Does anybody know about dominoes?

I’d love to get some (any!) information about a set of dominoes that I have. As you will see in the pics, they are in a well-oxidized wood box with dovetailed joints. The box is simply marked in black paint with one stencilled word, “Dominos”. There are 28 dominoes in total, of standard size. They are made of wood, with one side painted white with black paint filling scooped-out divots for the numbers. The other side has been left bare wood. Interestingly, the slices of wood the dominoes are made from are not of a uniform thickness; some dominoes are thicker than others.

Now, I’ve been researching antique domino sets but almost all are made of bone or ivory. Can anyone tell me when these wood ones might date to? Also, is the spelling of “dominos” vs. the more common “dominoes” significant? Thanks!

 

Dominoes or Dominos are both acceptable and plural in form.
-Any of several games played with a set of usually 28 dominoes.

There is also a card game called Domino.

Domino's actually has an apostrophe.

 

Thanks, @daveydempsey. Of course, you could very well be right but, with the fitted box and stencilled name, my gut feeling has been that they’re commercially made, and quite old, possibly 1880’s or 1890’s, or even a bit earlier. Again, though, this isn’t based on anything concrete, so it’s nice to have another opinion.

 

and then there was Derek and the Dominos...

 

And Fats Domino!

 

Domino......& Bond...

 

Dominos is used in French

 

During my driving test for 18-wheelers, I came around a corner and a truck from a toy factory had spilled his load all over the road. His load was domino games ...for as far as the eye could see, it was dominoes!
Driving over them was like being on an ice rink. I passed though, so I must have done something right!

 

The box may have held a different set of dominoes. Some got lost and a handyman made a replacement set.
I do not think they are from the 1890s. I would think 1930-50s.
Keep in mind people back in the day were proud of their work.

If they were commercially made, I would think that a different wood type would have been chosen and the edges would have been finished nicer.


Also the holes are misaligned and different sizes. There would have been more uniformity if commercially made.

 

Yes - looks like made from Barn shiplap siding - drilled to make the depressions then painted. Ends show roughcut from a circular saw blade

 

Thank you, clutteredcloset49 and Rayo56.

 

I think its a very cool set. It would take a lot of time and effort to hand make them.

Here's an article on the history of the game:
https://www.pagat.com/tile/wdom/history.html

 

I come across these often...if they are a pound or so I'll buy them for resale but they only get £6 ish here...I have my Stepdads and he was born late 40s.

(ETA...I am Games Challenged and I may be talking about chess pieces...I sold the contents of my stepdads box and just kept the box as it has his handwritten name on it)

 

In Dutch the game is domino, the pieces are dominostenen.
And then there is 'dominee', which is a vicar. 'De dominee speelt domino'= the vicar plays dominos.

 

About whether it is dominoes, dominos, or domino's:

dominoes or dominos plural in form but usually singular in construction : any of several games played with a set of usually 28 dominoes
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/domino

Other dictionaries and spelling sites agree.

 

Not really, American English is just one of the many forms of English that already existed before there was an agreed form of British English.
This is 2020, there is no reason why former colonies should conform to a country that is alien to them.

 

I have never seen a cruder set, but it makes me long for a game. I think I will dig ours out, now I am on lockdown, for a few games.