Museum Open

The New-York Historical Society will be open on Memorial Day, Monday, May 27 from 10am to 6pm

2013 Finalist National Medal for Museum and Library Service

Collection Highlights

Armchair
1785-1789
1916.7
Mahogany; pine, poplar
Related Person: George Washington

Related Content

library
American Revolution Guide
public programs
The Oath: The Obama White House and the Supreme Court

Support the New-York Historical Society

Help us present groundbreaking exhibitions and develop educational programs about our nation's history for more than 200,000 schoolchildren annually.

DONATE TODAY

collections > Luce Center > The Game of Tight Rope

Museum Collections

back

Luce Center

The Game of Tight Rope

The Game of Tight Rope
Title
The Game of Tight Rope
Date 
1870
Related People 
Artist/Maker: McLoughlin Bros.
Medium 
Cardboard, paper
Dimensions 
overall (open): 9 1/4 x 11 1/8 in. ( 23.5 x 28.3 cm )
Description 
"The Game of Tight Rope" bi-fold, paper covered cardboard game board; board chromolithographed with an image of four clowns crossing a tightrope above a river with a waterfall in the background, one man is falling into the river and two men are swimming out to a boat in the lower right corner, below tight rope is a numbered grid; board inscribed, "Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1870, by McLOUGHLIN BROS., in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, Washington./ GAME OF TIGHT ROPE."; Label on the revese of the board with a man walking on a tight rope and the inscription, "GAME OF/ TIGHT/ ROPE/ McLOUGHLIN BROS. NEW YORK."
Credit Line 
The Liman Collection
Object Number 
2000.723
Marks 
lithographed: on the board: "Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1870, by McLOUGHLIN BROS., in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, Washington./ GAME OF TIGHT ROPE." Label on the revese of the board with a man walking on a tight rope and the inscription, "GAME OF/ TIGHT/ ROPE/ McLOUGHLIN BROS. NEW YORK." lithographed: label on the revese of the board: "GAME OF/ TIGHT/ ROPE/ McLOUGHLIN BROS. NEW YORK."
Gallery Label 
The Game of Tight Rope carries subtle references to America's post-Civil War Reconstruction (1865-1877). Players travel across a precarious rope bridge, trying to avoid plunging into the swift waters below. A nearby rescue boat, piloted by Uncle Sam, carries an African-American child representing the Freedmen's Bureau, an agency formed in 1865 to aid and protect newly freed blacks.
Due to ongoing research, information about this object is subject to change.