Pastimes and Paradigms : Games we Play

Pastimes and Paradigms : Games we Play is an exploration of the "evolution of games since 1800." It comes to us from Cornell University, no less, specifically the Hirshland Exhibition Gallery of the Carl A Kroch Library of Cornell University.

The attempt to make this site "fun" is admirable. The designers make full use of high-bandwidth (hint, hint) capabilities to create a graphically intensive interface. The Monopoly Board on the splash page is as an invitation to play, as is even the Table of Contents:

• A Plethora of Patimes
• Paragon of Pastimes
• Political Paradigms
• Promoting Principles
• Passages of People
• Places to Play
• Patterns of Pedagogy

But the games themselves, and the anthopological focus of games as mirrors of the culture and times that created them, are what makes this site such a treasure. The exhibitors explain:

"The exhibition includes a wide variety of antique and contemporary games, as well as rare books on rules, strategies, and recreation. Featured items include early nineteenth-century geographical board games; a Civil War game; suffrage games that garnered support in the battle for women's votes; a vintage Monopoly game (the subject of Cornell President Jeffrey Lehman's first book); gambling punchboards; and a selection of games inspired by television programming. Although they differ in design and presentation, they share a single message: the game is the medium."

Thanks for the find, Chris Saeger.