Pins in Burgundy, the Lin Kessler collection
This exhibition summarizes the study work on the collection of keels given by Lin Kessler and kept at the Museum of Burgundy life in Dijon, put on line on Joconde, the collective catalogue of collections of museums of France.
Credits: this content was originally published on the Mona Lisa website. It was created in 2004 by Anne Laemmlé, curator of the exhibition "Derrière s'allongeait un jeu de quilles..." and Mathilde Huet, French museum service. The records of the Burgundian Museum of Life are online on POP, an open heritage platform.
Presentation of the bowling collection of the museum of Burgundy life
Have you ever heard the sound of a ball hitting pins?
This noise, now rare, was however the usual companion accompanying a particular entertainment: the bowling game.
Combining the universal and the local, bowling games come in a multitude of forms and rules that always favour four elements: bowling, balls, a playground and players.
Thus, bowling games, approached from a historical, social and technical angle, allow to resurrect, in part, the history of playful practices in Burgundy from the 19th to the 20th century.
The Museum of Burgundian Life presents, with this exhibition, the bowling pins given by Lin Kessler (1902-1992).
Discover all the objects of the collection online on Mona Lisa
History of the collection
In 1981, Lin Kessler (1902-1992), wood turner in Longvic (Côte-d'Or) and collector of bowling, gives to the Musée de la Vie Bourguignonne the bowling representative of the Burgundian games.
The donation consists of 82 pins often accompanied by a ball (50 balls in total).
A keel maker himself, Lin Kessler brought his son Raymond into his passion, and together they collected more than 700 keels across France and a few neighbouring countries, for which they earned a mention in the "guiness des records" in 1975.
Since then many other specimens have joined the collection.
Other museums have also benefited from his generosity, including Champlitte.
In 2001, the town of Longvic inaugurated "The Bowling Gallery" thanks to the collection of these enthusiasts.
The bowling net
Definition
"Bowling games (...) consist, in their essential principle, of reversing by means of a projectile (stick, ball or other object) of a variable distance (up to 30 metres), objects called 'keels' placed vertically at ground level in various layouts and numbers. Competitive games - between players and between teams - they require at least the participation of two people..." (excerpt from: "Les Français joue aux quilles", Paris, Maisonneuve et Larose, 1964).
Entertainment in French society of the 19th and 20th centuries
Bowling allow to discover some entertainment of the French society, and Burgundian in particular.
Men escape from daily constraints through play, by grouping together among friends. The bistro, meeting place, is the ideal setting for these bowling parties. The risks associated with this practice are also mentioned: fights and accidents that sometimes accompany bowling parties. Sometimes it becomes a gamble. Municipal authorities then closely monitor the installation of games and control their owners.
Historical
The first reliable source evoking bowling in France dates back to 1378. At that time, a stick was used as a projectile. The ball, mentioned as early as the 15th century, did not really impose itself until the 17th century.
From the Middle Ages to the 19th century, all segments of society played this game, even if the conditions for practice varied. The main players in this game are men, the female and childish practice of bowling is only occasional.
In the 20th century, bowling was a largely male popular game. Bowling games were often set up near bistros. The municipalities which have the means also propose to some citizens to hold the game of communal bowling at parties or fairs, in exchange for a financial participation.
[Le rondeau: Val-de-Saône bowling table, Dijon, Musée de la Vie bourguignonne, © Anne Laemmlé]
Variety of bowling
The composition and practice of the bowling game seems simple: a few pins, a few projectiles, a field and you are ready to play!
However, the study of bowling quickly encounters a recurring problem in the study of traditional practices: their variety. The track can be straight or curved, flat or inclined, with or without a hillock... The pins can be 3, 5, 6, 7, 9 or 10. They can be placed in squares, diamonds, rectangles, triangles, aligned one after the other... The projectile can be a stick, a ball or a wooden ball. It can be thrown, rolled, slid...
This variety, which makes it difficult to synthesize this game, makes it at the same time surprising. The multitude of possible combinations promotes the imagination of game manufacturers.
[Grouping of bowlers from the Auxois, Dijon, museum of Burgundy life, © Anne Laemmlé]
Bowling games in Burgundy
Practiced in all departments of Burgundy, they have not completely disappeared from the Burgundian landscape.
On the occasion of certain summer festivals, bowling games are still being set up. There are some special rules according to the places: the side game of Chalon-sur-Saône, the ball game Mâconnais, the right game of Morvan, the Dijon game, the game of Bressan flap... Finally, the existing sociability around the game is important. How are players organized? Who participates in the games? What interests are there?
[left: two bowling pins of Bowling Classic, right: two bowling pins of American bowling, Dijon, museum of Burgundy Life, © Anne Laemmlé]
Towards the sport of bowling
From the middle of the 20th century, the practice of bowling decreased. Faced with the expansion of other games, such as pétanque, or, faced with the development of American bowling, traditional bowling games disappear in many regions. In other cases, they adapt. In 1957 was created the FFBSQ (French Bowling and Bowling Sports Federation). It formalizes the practice of the game: sports rules, standardization of the fields, accessories of the game, establishment of calendar... Currently, the federation recognizes seven different bowling sports: bowling six, eight, nine, classic bowling, schere, saint-gall, bowling. Bowling (American) has a strong spread throughout the country. As for the other disciplines, more marginal and little publicized, they are often only practiced in a few departments.
Highlights of the collection
Different manufacturing techniques
Skittle
Trimmed keel
Keel turned at the wood tower
Pin turned on a sabotier trick
Keel turned from a wheel hub
Different forms of pins
Auxois keels
Keel 81.7.56.1
Keel 81.7.57.1
Ball 81.7.52.2
Chalonnais keels
Charolais keels
Quilles du Châtillonnais
Gold Coast Keels
Quilles du Morvan