Ground billiards

Ground billiards

Ground billiards in 15th-century France (1480 woodcut, based on the Saint-Lô Tapestry). This version uses a port (arch) and conical king pin, is bounded by a wicker railing, and appears to make use of one ball per player, with more than two players.
First played	14th–15th century Europe
Characteristics
Contact	No
Team members	Single opponents shown in illustrations; doubles or teams mentioned in 1674 indoor rules
Mixed-sex	Yes
Type	Outdoor and possibly indoor
Equipment	Ball, mallet/mace, hoop, king pin
Venue	Lawn or court
Presence
Obsolete	Yes

Ground billiards is a modern term for a family of medieval European lawn games, the original names of which are mostly unknown, played with a long-handled mallet (the mace), wooden balls, a hoop (the pass), and an upright skittle or pin (the king). The game, which cue-sports historians have called "the original game of billiards",^{[1][2]: 117} developed into a variety of modern outdoor and indoor games and sports such as croquet, pool, snooker, and carom billiards. Its relationship to games played on larger fields, such as hockey, golf, and bat-and-ball games, is more speculative. As a broader classification, the term is sometimes applied to games dating back to classical antiquity that are attested via difficult-to-interpret ancient artworks and rare surviving gaming artifacts.