A wonderfully timeworn English Snakes & Ladders board, dating from around the 1930s and made by Spear’s Games at the Spear Works in Enfield.

And what a board it is.

Against a simple checkerboard of faded blue and cream, enormous curling snakes and bright yellow ladders weave their way through a marvellous collection of tiny illustrated scenes. Children fall over, climb where they shouldn’t, squabble, get into scrapes, receive prizes and generally behave exactly as children do.

The illustrations are an absolute joy. There is a little girl cuddling her doll, a child reading an enormous book, another with a bandaged head, a black cat leaping beneath a ladder and, rather alarmingly, several children encountering snakes.

The reverse retains its original SNAKES AND LADDERS paper label, marked Spear’s Games, Manufactured at the Spear Works, Enfield, England.

This one has certainly lived a life. The folding board has considerable age-related wear and old repairs, including extensive old tape to the reverse. There is wear and separation along the central fold, surface rubbing, marks, staining and losses, including a particularly worn area towards the lower centre of the playing surface.

And yet, somehow, none of that spoils it.

The colours remain lovely and the illustrations have enormous charm. Displayed open on a shelf, propped against a wall or even framed, it is a fabulous piece of early 20th-century childhood ephemera.

Sold exactly as found, old repairs and all.

Details

Date: c.1930s

Maker: Spear’s Games, Spear Works, Enfield

Origin: England

Material: Printed paper-covered folding board

Condition: Heavily timeworn. Old tape repairs to the reverse, wear and damage along the fold, surface marks, staining, rubbing and areas of paper loss. The board remains together but should be handled with care. Please study all photographs carefully.