9-hole bagatelle

New arrival!  This is the classic 9-hole English Bagatelle that existed in the 18th century, and probably at least the 1600s.

While the full tables are normally 7-10 feet long, this is a kids' version that is only 4 feet long.  For a while I had been looking for a proper full-size one, but they are actually hard to come by in North America, and shipping a full one from overseas would have been prohibitive.

Made for the toy shop Hamley's, I believe what I have here is what we see in this clipping from the Hamleys Toy Shop 1937 catalogue

1937 Hamleys Toy Shop catalogue

It is interesting to note the inclusion of a kids-sized bar billiards table, which would have been a quite recent trend in Britain at that time.  I would love to find a small bar billiards table like that too.

Photos from the auction house:

This shows off the accessories it comes with, including the original balls, cue, mace (before cues they used maces,) and the Pigeon Hole arch.