Donated to the Museum by the manufacturer Selchow & Righter Co. in 1978, this word game is "related" to a number of other cube games. However, this one is somewhat different in that all parts of the game are included within a clear plastic cube!
Pictured on the right is a printed cardboard cube which holds the game. While the cardboard cube is about six inches square, the game itself is a clear plexiglas cube of about 4 inches square sitting inside the cardboard cube. The intent of the cardboard cube is to serve as packaging for the game.
Within the plastic cube is a plastic timer holding pink "sand" (back upper left of the photograph), The timer is two cylindrical tubes of glass approximately 1.7cm in diameter. At either end are clear plastic supports holding the timer firmly in place. Each tube narrows at one end but doesn't close. Joined in the middle, the two tubes form a small passage for particles of pink "sand" to pass from one tube into the other. When the plastic cube is turned upside down and the sand is in the top end of the two joined tubes, all of the sand immediately passes through the middle to the bottom tube in a minute.
Also in the plexiglas cube are 7 wooden cubes. A capital letter is printed in red on each face of each cube. The following is the distribution of the letters for these cubes:
L,N,S,R,P,B
S,T,R,D,V,J
A,U,I,O,E,E
M,Z,D,W,C,T
Y,F,K,H,G,X.
A,Q,I,N,L,O.
E,U,I,O,A,E.
The game may be played by one or more persons. The player picks up the plexiglas cube, and turns the cube so that the pink sand is at the top of the glass tube. As this is done, the 7 letter cubes fall to the bottom of the plexiglas cube. The player puts the plexiglas cube on a table or other surface and immediately looks at the wooden cubes and says out loud as many words that can be made from the embossed letters showing on the top of the seven wooden cubes. When all of the pink sand falls through to the bottom of the timer, the player stops calling out words. Points can be awarded for number of words and length of words. When more than one person plays, the winner is the one with the most points.
Last update May 31, 2010