By the late 16th century it was played by way of carvings on village greens; however to quote Shakespeare in A Midsummer Night’s Dream Act 2 Scene 2 ‘The nine men’s morris is fill’d up with mud’, we can see they also had problems with the weather. At some time, it was also known as Merels possibly from the Old English word Mere, meaning ‘the marking of the boundaries’, which was similar to the French game.

Whereas the name Morris is thought to have originated from the Latin word merellus meaning ‘the corruption of counters‘. To the ancient Celts, the Morris square was sacred. At the centre lay the Holy Mill, a symbol of regeneration - emanating out from it - the four cardinal directions, the four elements and the four winds.

Known in many lands - in France as Merelles - in Germany Muhle - in Holland as Molenspel - the game is probably one of the oldest and widest known in the world, with many names.

In England it is found carved into the seats of several cathedrals, in churches and even in the flagstones of an Abbey.

OBJECT OF THE GAME

The best way to describe the game is to ‘think of Noughts and Crosses’! Taking it in turns, the object of the game is to place three pins (merels) in a row, to make a ‘mill’, allowing you to remove one of your opponents pieces. Ultimately to reduce your opponent to two merels - or - if the game is stalemate, then the player with the most remaining merels, wins.

THE BOARD

The board is crafted from English Oak grown on an established well managed estate in South West England. Inlaid with boxwood and brass inserts it is played with two sets of nine brass pins with different coloured tops. The game has a base of crushed velvet and comes in a green box with a gold foil Celtic knot on the lid.