Seega boards now available on EBay!

Finally got around to listing some of our boardgames on EBay.  Right now we're going with Seega boards to see how things go.  Two styles are listed: one with the raised fence frame, and one with the flush frame.  Very excited about this big step.  Eventually we may set up our own online storefront.

Back in the Game

Time to dust off the blog--took quite a sabbatical, but we're back.

I just created a new page with a draft of the rules of Seega (you'll see the link along the top of the page with the other page links).  There are several websites out there that detail this very enjoyable game, but we felt that since we plan to continue making (and soon, selling) Seega boards, we should provide the rules off this page.

Casting Senet Game Pieces

Over the last several months we've come up with four or five different designs for the game pieces that go with our Senet boards.  We decided it made sense to pick two of our favorite designs and just start making sets of them.  These pics show our workspace as we cast some of the pieces (usually a pretty messy process when you start dealing with the dyes), and a few sets of one of the game piece pairs we decided to go with. This pair is one of the first that we designed and cast.  I think it's one of our favorites because they're so simple, and are very true to the original ancient Egyptian pieces.

Seega Boardgame mockup.

Took a few minutes this afternoon to cut some small squares out of some of our scrap wood to put together an impromptu Seega game board.  Seega is a game we've only recently become acquainted with, which was played in ancient North Africa and the Middle East.  We used some colored glass gems we have on hand for temporary game pieces.  Game set-up reminds me a bit of 9 Mens Morris, in that each player basically gets to choose where they place their pieces (just not the center square), so game play each time will be a bit different.  Game play is very similar to Tafl games however--you capture an opponent's piece by sandwiching it between two of your own pieces (also known as 'custodial capture').  We played a game tonight and loved it--much more complex gameplay is possible than we intially expected.  This is definitely a game we'll make more of down the line.

Modern "font" Senet Boards

Just trying something different, we used a spray-on enamel for the game squares on these game boards. The clean game square symbols, as well as the spaces between the squares themselves, were covered with thin strips of tape which we lifted after spraying the enamel.  Has something of a modern feel to them, so I'm not too sure if we'll come back to this technique.

New Game Pieces for Senet and Tjau

Started to put the new molds through their paces again today.  Tried a few colors, and for a few added some gold leaf  touches.  The blue we're going for a lapis lazuli look.  We also really like the gold leafing at the base of the dark green pieces.

Game Pieces mold finished

Our the game piece molds that we poured three days ago for our Senet boards are finished.  Didn't waste any time pouring a test set.  We'll experiment with some color combinations over the next several days.

Here's the first new set on an ebony and copper leaf Senet board.

And another Senet board in July...

We've been hitting the Senet boards hard this month. For this one we've gone back to the King Tut style Senet symbols, rather than the more Ramses era symbols we've put out recently.  

Senet game boxes in various stages

We've more or less perfected the steps to produce our Senet boards.  They're not cookie cutter boxes, however.  Even using the jigs I've set up in my woodshop, each one is slightly different, and the lids are cut to fit each box specifically.  Staining, oiling, and decorating the boxes and board lids themselves also offer an incredible range of artistic licence, while staying true to the spirit of the game.  Here's a pic of boxes in various stages of completion.

Wood stained Senet Box

Not all the Senet boxes we've made have a color stain.  This one is pine with a few coats of walnut Danish Oil.  The black game squares are highlighted with a gold leaf border.

Red Senet Board

This is another finished set.  I was initially skeptical that the red stain would translate well for our senet boxes, but once it was oiled and sealed, I think the results were impressive.  We're still putting together the final molds for the game pieces themselves; when we have those, we'll be able to vary the colors of the pieces.

Ebony Senet Board

We stained the box of this Senet board with an ebony stain.  The papyrus plants around the base, at the ends of the game board, and the inner squares of the game squares, are all copper leafing.

Crocodile throwing sticks

Senet was played by casting throwing sticks or rolling dice.  The number of squares you moved your playing piece depended on which way the sticks lantded.  One side of the stick was usually distinct from the other by color, decoration, or shape.  We carved these throwing sticks to resemble crocodiles--a very important animal in ancient Egyptian art.  

Casting Senet Game Pieces

Finally got around to casting the game pieces for the Senet and Tjau games.  We hand-carved and baked the original pieces out of modeling clay, then created a single mold for each piece. From these molds, we created five game pieces of each of style (2 different styles for each player, a simple cone and spool, and a more ornate set modeled after a bundle of reeds and a papyrus flower).  Below are pictures of the sets we've made so far--really at this point we're just playing with colors.  The bottom picture shows a five-piece mold for our cone-shaped game markers.

Senet Game Board with carved lid and painted gold base pattern

Both the box and the Senet game board lid are made of pine. The 30-Square Senet board is hand-carved, and the heiroglyphs were also etched by hand.  The box was stained with an ebony wipe-on stain and then sealed. After sealing, the pattern along the bottom edge was hand-painted with gold leaf (the pattern is based on a pattern along part of King Tut's gold death mask).  A 20-Square Tjau board is carved on the flip-side of the lid.

Geese of Meidum-inspired Senet box

Here's our latest box, inspired by artwork from the Mastaba of Nefermaat, from the 4th Dynasty (2613 to 2494 BC) of Egypt's Old Kingdom.  The Geese of Meidum is considered a masterpiece of Egyptian art.  The medium of the original was probably albumen (egg white) or vegetable gum on plaster.  Ours is egg tempera, so the techniques are closely related.  This box is now one of our favorites.  Now we just need to make a gameboard worthy of the box.

Here's the original, from the Mastaba itself.

Gold Leaf Heiroglyphs

We're experimenting with applying gold leaf for the Senet board heiroglyphs.  Here's an example on one of our older boxes.  The outstanding question is whether or not the protective seals over the box will be enough to protect the gold leaf during game play.

Senet Board with side drawer 2

Following up on the last post, here is our side-drawer game board fully assembled and treated with a medium-walnut Danish oil.  I took my time putting this one together-- it was a lot of fun, but I think next time I'll do it a bit differently. Next step will be to apply the game squares (haven't yet decided if this will be a 30-Square Senet board or a 20 Square Tjau board) and the side panel paintings.

Senet board with side drawer

Just for something different, I thought I'd work on a Senet board with a built-in drawer.  Many of the recovered Senet games have a drawer on one of the box ends.  I came across a picture a while ago of a 20 Squares board with a drawer on one of the halves of the long side of the box, which I found incredibly interesting, if only because it was so different from the other, more 'common' boxes.  Anyway, this undecorated box is my first attempt at executing a similar design.  Still needs to be stained, painted, and sealed, and I also want to fix a suitable handle to the drawer.

Here's a picture of the original 20 Squares board, which dates back to the Egyptian New Kingdom.

Oriental Institute, University of Chicago