Explore a curated collection of antique board game illustrations showcasing the rich history and artistry of classic games from around the world.
Popularity of Board Games
Board games have grown in popularity lately, especially with the younger generation. Board game cafes have popped up lately; there is even one in my town. Many pubs have a collection of board games that are free for their customers to use.
We have extensive board games from “3-person chess” to “Go International Travel” as a family. There are seven versions of Monopoly, from the London Olympics edition to the Hong Kong and Newcastle versions.
We love playing vintage board games. For example, Go International Travel is a 1960s travel board game complete with traveller’s cheques, visas and money in many European currencies that no longer exist.
Board games date back to the Egyptians, 3100 BC, with Senet. Backgammon dates from 2000 BC, Chess from 1300 BC, and Snakes and Ladders from 200 AD.
One of the newest board games I have spotted reflects the current times: “Pandemic.” It’s a cooperative strategy game. It will be interesting to see if it will become a classic.
I hope you enjoy looking at these pictures of old game boards. I particularly love the boards with vintage pictorial maps on them.
How to Download The Board Games
Click on the title of the vintage game board you want to download. A higher-resolution image will open in a new window on your browser. If you click on that game board with your mouse, you will have the menu option to save or print that image.
Board Games Illustrations 1-6
Print showing gameboard for a game “The Road to Washington” 1884 from the Library of Congress. A dice game with “Washington” at the top and “Grand Central Depot” near the bottom with connecting routes through the cities of “Philadelphia”, “Newark”, “Baltimore”, “Boston”, “New Haven”, “Dover” where you “lose next turn”, “Cincinnati”, “Chicago”, “Richmond”, “St. Louis” and “New Orleans.” When a player lands in a city other than Dover, he moves his game piece to a designated city.
This is a picture of a Dutch Board game, the Owl Game. A circular board game with compartments containing objects, animals and dice. In the middle is an owl with a mirror. Below the game board, the game’s rules are in three columns.
3. Around The World In 80 Days
Another Dutch Board game (1876), with 80 numbered boxes with scenes from the story of Jules Verne: Around the World in Eighty Days. In the centre is a representation of a world map with the travel route.
Dutch board game (1907) on the occasion of the second Peace Conference in The Hague and the start of the construction of the Peace Palace. Heart-shaped goose board-like game with squares numbered from 1 to 63. In the midfield, the rules of the game are in letterpress.
Above the board, there are two trumpet-blowing angels of peace, further images of the journeys of the various heads of state, and a fantasy representation of the Peace Palace yet to be built.
5. Picture of Zoology Board Games
Picture a vintage board game in the form of a circle with numbers numbered from 2 to 117, with vertebrates and invertebrates. There are four hunting scenes in the midfield. In the corners around the circle are images with lines of cats.
6. 1876 French Celestial Map Game Board
You will find more wonderful vintage Celestial maps and antique zodiac maps here.
Board Games Illustrations 7-12
7. Trouble In China – French Board Game
1900s French game board map – Les troubles en Chine. There are some vintage maps of Asia and China in Picture Box Blue.
8. 1932 Picture of Japanese World Map Game Board
This game board has a wonderfully illustrated pictorial map of the world. It reminds me of some of the Chase Pictorial World Maps.
There is a wide collection of vintage Japanese illustrations and prints on Picture Box Blue.
9. Pictures of Board Games – Atchin
A vintage Dutch board game called Atchin (1974). Atchin is the old name of present-day Aceh in North Sumatra. The game’s object is to capture the Kraton (Sultan’s Palace). Three representations of Dutch soldiers and Indonesians are right under the rules of the game in letterpress.
A picture of a Monkey board game from the collection at the British Museum.
A game board in an octagonal shape with compartments numbered from 1 to 63 arranged in a spiral, some bearing pictures of monkeys; in each corner, monkeys wearing clothes; in the centre, six monkeys playing musical instruments; the rules at the bottom.
1898 picture of a flower parade for a board game.
A Dutch rectangular board game with 88 numbered squares. In the centre, a large image of a flower parade during the inauguration celebrations following the inauguration of Queen Wilhelmina in The Hague. Pictured is the first prize-winning chariot. Wilhelmina and Emma watch from a stage then. On the left, the game’s rules are in letterpress in two columns.
12. Pictures of Board Games Chinese Game
This is a picture of a circular game board from the British Library collection. There are sixty-three fields for cutting out: the head and shoulders of a Chinese man at the centre, directed to the right, smoking a pipe, surrounded by numbered fields, some with Chinese figures and buildings; below, numbers between 1 and 15 for cutting out; No.34 d from a series.
Board Games Illustrations 13-18
The game rambles through the USA. It is an instructive geographical game for the young. The board game shows a map of the United States of America as it appeared in 1890.
14. George Washington Snake Game Board
A picture of a game board with red, gold, and blue spaces, numbered between 1 and 122; on the board are illustrations that are numbered and correspond to the blue “starred” spaces, which are action spots, the player landing on one follows the instructions given with the corresponding illustration, and moves accordingly.
At the beginning of the game, a portrait of George Washington appears, and at the end, a rustic-looking homestead is identified as the “home of the Washington family.”
Illustrated board game with circles numbered 1 to 63, walking over the Eiffel Tower. Goose board-like advertising game, on the occasion of the world exhibition in Paris in 1889, for Blooker’s cocoa.
There are two columns on the left and right with a girl on them. The girl on the left carries the French flag, and the girl on the right holds the American flag. In the background on the right is the Statue of Liberty. The game’s rules are in letterpress in the middle of the page.
An illustrated board game with a spiral with compartments numbered 1 to 63, with figures from the novel ‘The fate of Klaasje Zewindow’ (1865-1866) by Jacob van Lennep.
17. Plane Trip Around the World
If you like this aeroplane-themed pictorial game board, you will probably enjoy these vintage airline posters and maps.
A Japanese woodcut showing a pot with spring anemones and dwarf plum blossom stands on a game board of a Japanese chess variant, shôgi. The stones in this game are also called ‘horses’; hence, this design is in this print series, published for the new year of the Horse in 1822, with two poems.
Check out these Japanese Luna animal illustrations on the blog.
Board Games Illustrations 19-23
Assarmot was Poland’s first educational board game, created around 1830 by Klementyna Hoffmanowa. Based on the classic Game of the Goose, players rolled dice and moved along a spiral board featuring key figures and events from Polish history.
Designed as fun and educational, the game helped kids learn history while playing. The name Assarmot comes from a legendary ancestor of the Sarmatians, and the game was so popular it was reissued in 1904 as “Piast” with updated content.
The hand-coloured board has 63 illustrated spaces, each with its own rule—some move players forward, others set them back. The goal? Reach the final space, a map of Poland, first!
”Cannonade” is a board game produced in 1916 during World War I, reflecting the patriotic fervour prevalent in New Zealand at the time.
An Estonian board game called “Puppet King”.
22. Fun Version of Snakes & Ladder
This is a fun Estonian version of the classic Snakes and Ladder board game.
Snakes and Ladders has been around for over 2,000 years, starting in ancient India as Moksha Patam. It was more than just a game—it was a lesson about life. The ladders stood for good qualities like kindness and honesty, helping players climb toward success, while the snakes represented bad habits like greed and anger, pulling them back down. When the British brought the game to England in the 19th century, it was turned into a fun family game, losing some of its deeper meaning but keeping the same ups and downs. Even today, it reminds us that sometimes we get lucky breaks, and other times we have to start all over again!
Tutu’s Game, a revival of the Game of the Goose. A revival of the Greek game of pleasure and recreation.
Final Thoughts & Other Posts
The enduring charm of these vintage board games lies in their gameplay and artistic designs, which offer a window into their time’s cultural and historical contexts. As board games continue to experience a resurgence in popularity, these antique illustrations serve as a testament to the timeless nature of communal play and the rich traditions that have shaped our gaming heritage.
There are some watercolour paintings of toys in the Index of American Design and a collection of vintage paper dolls on the site.
If you enjoyed these pictures of board games, you might also enjoy these other pictorial collections on Picture Box Blue.
If you fancy, you can Buy Me A Coffee Here.
Linda
Monday 17th of March 2025
These are so very cool! Can’t wait to figure out how to use them! Fantastic collection!
claire
Tuesday 18th of March 2025
Thank you, we love playing board games in my family and discovering new one.
Donna @ Modern on Monticello
Tuesday 9th of November 2021
These would be perfect to frame for a family room or basement game room. You share such wonderful vintage images! Thanks for linking up each week. #HomeMattersParty
claire
Thursday 11th of November 2021
Thank you, that is a great idea for a den or games room.