Collection Highlights
Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826)
Date:
1805
Object Number:
1867.306
Medium:
Oil on linen
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Museum Collections
Luce Center
The Giant Nest of ABC and Picture Blocks
Object Number:
2000.221
Date:
ca. 1900
Medium:
Wood, paper
Dimensions:
Largest (block): 5 3/4 x 7 1/8 x 7 1/8 in. (14.6 x 18.1 x 18.1 cm)
Marks:
lithographed: on the largest block, across the top: "The Giant/ Nest of A.B. C./ and/ Picture Blocks"
Description:
Twelve wooden nesting alphabet blocks (hollow) covered in paper, each progressively smaller than the next, nesting into each other; each block printed with sequence of letters in alphabet, numbers, multiplication tables or the days of the week and the months of the year across the tops, and chromolithographed illustrations of animals, boats, relgious vignetts and children in various poses; largest block printed on the top, "The Giant/ Nest of A.B. C./ and/ Picture Blocks".
Gallery Label:
Nested blocks, consisting of a series of successively smaller hollow blocks that fit neatly one inside the other, were invented by toy manufacturer Jesse Crandall in 1881. They continue as a staple of children's play today.
Bibliography:
Hofer, Margaret K. "The Games We Played: The Golden Age of Board & Table Games." New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2003.
Credit Line:
The Liman Collection
Due to ongoing research, information about this object is subject to change.
