Mah-Jongg set. China, ca.1920.

Mah-Jongg set. China, ca.1920.
Bakelite counters.
Lacquered and polychrome wooden box.
Accompanied by game manual, by Vicente Sotelo Matti.
Exhibits wear consistent with age and use.
Measurements: 6 x 27,5 x 25 cm.

This Mah-Jongg game corresponds to a Chinese production of the twenties of the last century, a period in which this traditional game experienced a wide diffusion both in Asia and in the West. The set is presented in its original black lacquered wooden box, richly polychromed, with a scene of oriental inspiration starring the figure of a dignitary, treated with bright colors and refined graphics.

The tokens are made of bakelite, a characteristic material of the first decades of the 20th century, widely used in leisure objects due to its resistance and ease of production. This detail allows us to accurately situate the set in the first third of the 20th century, at a time of transition between traditional materials (bone and bamboo) and new industrial composites.

It is accompanied by a game manual in Spanish, signed by Vicente Sotelo Matti, testimony to the early European interest in Mah-Jongg and its adaptation to a Western public.