1912 Saussine Pictorial Aviation 'Round the World' Board Game

A rare aviation-themed chromolithograph game board highlighting the global fascination with aviation int the early 20th century. This is an extremely rare c. 1912 Léon Saussine pictorial map or game board of an airplane voyage around the world. The map serves as the board for a jeu de parcours (journey game), which snakes around the world, beginning and ending in France. Along the route, vignettes of adventures (and misadventures) decorate the board. Several present problems, including getting tangled in telegraph lines, crashing in the sea, and suffering a mid-air collision. Others depict the highlights: the pyramids at Giza, exotic landscapes, and harassing a farmer and his sheep. A steam locomotive appears in one of the vignettes. The adventure (and the game) ends back in France, with a view of the Eiffel Tower.

Chromolithography

Chromolithography is a color lithographic technique developed in the mid-19th century. The process involved using multiple lithographic stones, one for each color, to yield a rich composite effect. Oftentimes, the process would start with a black basecoat upon which subsequent colors were layered. Some chromolithographs used 30 or more separate lithographic stones to achieve the desired product. Chromolithograph color could also be effectively blended for even more dramatic results. The process became extremely popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when it emerged as the dominate method of color printing. The vivid color chromolithography produced made it exceptionally effective for advertising and propaganda imagery.

Publication History and Census

The map/game was published by Léon Saussine, founder of Jeux Saussine (Saussine Games) in Paris around 1900. We have been unable to locate any examples in institutional collections. A rare opportunity.