Victorian Folding Tabletop "Old English" Bagatelle Game With Balls & Two Cues, Circa 1890

Victorian Folding Tabletop "Old English" Bagatelle Game With Balls & Two Cues, Circa 1890.

To begin, the black ball is placed on the middle spot. Each turn consists of a player playing all eight balls down the table towards the cups. The first ball must strike the black ball. If it does not, the ball is removed from the table, does not score and the player tries again in the same way until the black ball is moved. Balls must be played from the front spot until the black ball is struck. Thereafter, balls can be played from anywhere behind the front spot and it is not necessary to strike the black ball or any other ball.

Any ball that returns more than half way down the table is removed for the remainder of the turn. The aim is to pot as many balls as possible in the cups, scoring points according to the value indicated in the cup. The black scores double points and so ideally will be deposited into the highest scoring cup in the middle thus scoring 18 points. The maximum score is therefore 54 points.

The game is usually played to 120 points. However, if it is the first player who reaches the target first, that player must complete his turn and the second player must also complete a turn to ensure fairness. Once the second player has finished, the player with the highest score, wins.