Vintage Bingo Cage with Bakelite Handle c.1930-1950
$250
ABOUT
A vintage, metal bingo cage with chrome supports, orange Bakelite handle, wooden balls and pewter ball basket embossed "Met Games". The wooden balls are embossed with bingo letters and numbers. Mounted on a wooden plinth with center ball ramp. Turn the handle and the ball drops into the basket and slides down the shoot.
- CREATOR Met Games.
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DATE OF MANUFACTURE c.1930-1950.
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MATERIALS AND TECHNIQUES Metal, Wood, Bakelite.
- CONDITION Good. Wear consistent with age and use. Some rust to the cage and supports. Shellac applied to the cage.
- DIMENSIONS H 12 in. W 15 in. D 9 in.
HISTORY
The game was popularized by Edwin Lowe. While at a traveling carnival near Atlanta in December 1929 the toy merchandiser saw people eagerly playing a game called "Beano". The origin of the name "Bingo" is unknown but may date to the middle 1920s. There are claims that one of the Lowe's friends got so excited to have won that she yelled out "Bingo" instead of "Beano," or that the word echoes the sound of a bell.
