1837. The New Jewish Game Woodcut of an antisemitic board game with printed instructions

Print of a numbered playing board and Dutch instructions for a dice game, the New Jewish Game, printed in 1837. It was a variation on a game called Jeu de Sept, Merry Seven, or Glückshaus, which was common throughout Europe. It is played with two dice and many tokens. The dice are rolled and the value indicates the corresponding space to which tokens can be added or removed. The central space is numbered 7, which has the highest probability of being rolled, and depicts a man with a bushy beard, curly sidelocks, and a large, hooked nose; all stereotypical features commonly attributed to Jewish men. Tokens are only added, not removed, to the Jew’s space. This is the only regularly unlucky roll for players, and suggests how the Jew will always take money. The player who rolls a rare 12 collects the accumulated tokens on the board, and the player with the most tokens wins. Thus, the player's goal is to emulate the antisemitic stereotype of the greedy Jew hoarding, counting, or handling money, which originates from the economic and professional restrictions placed on early European Jews. They were barred from owning land, farming, joining trade guilds, and military service. These restrictions forced many Jews into occupations such as money changing or money lending. They were perceived as morally deficient, greedy, and willing to engage in unethical business practices. This canard was often visually depicted as a Jewish man expressing an exaggerated desire for or accumulation of money. The game board is one of more than 900 items in the Katz Ehrenthal Collection of antisemitic artifacts and visual materials.