Untitled
The Ideal Novelty and Toy Company
Category
Ephemera
Date
1963
Materials
Cardboard
Measurements
545 x 545 mm
Place of origin
England
Collection
Sudbury Hall Museum of Childhood, Derbyshire
NT 672520.2
Summary
The playing board for a Mouse Trap board game manufactured by The Ideal Toy Company Ltd. The board is made of cardboard and is square shaped. In its centre the board has a diagram in white on a blue background of how the various game pieces are to be set up prior to the game commencing. In one corner of the diagram 'mouse trap game' is printed in yellow letters below an oval shaped 'IDEAL' logo in green. Also printed in this corner in black letters is 'BUILDING PLAN'. Around the edge of the board there are various different coloured and shaped spaces which mark out a route that the players of the game have to follow. Several of these spaces have printed instructions on them that are relevant to the game (e.g. 'move ahead 4' and 'cat! go back to start'). The edge of the board is also decorated with colour images of things relevant to the game including a cat, a piece of cheese, a dog and a jar of poison. The board can be folded in half so it can be stored in its box and there are a number of holes in it to allow for the game pieces to be connected and set up.
Provenance
Originally manufactured by The Ideal Toy Company in 1963. Purchased by the National Trust Museum of Childhood via ebay on 4th July 2019 as part of the Collecting Cultures 'Exploring Childhoods' project.
Makers and roles
The Ideal Novelty and Toy Company, manufacturer