132 - Presentation case for the Fontainebleau Boston game,

Presentation case for the Fontainebleau Boston game, made of embossed, pink-tinted paper with gold-decorated pearl friezes, containing the rules of the game and a payout chart, along with a stylus and a built-in dial for counting points. Good condition. Paris, Les Papetiers, undated, late 18th–early 19th century. H. 16.5 x W. 11 cm. History Boston is a card game resulting from a fusion of Quadrille and Whist, which emerged around 1780 during the American Revolution and was very popular in Europe during the 19th century. It is said to have been invented in Boston, Massachusetts. Boston is a precursor to Bridge. Surrounded by the British at the start of the American Revolutionary War. The insurgents had no alternative but to pass the time by playing cards. They transformed Whist—a game played in teams by their enemies—into a game based on individual play, Boston, which they passed on to their French allies, who hastened to import it into their homeland, where Napoleon—who hated the English—had banned Whist. And so it is said that Benjamin Franklin helped Boston become the darling of Europe... which successively christened it “Boston of Fontainebleau” and “Boston of Nantes or Quimper.”