The small cross makes this easier by showing where the middle of the board is, so all you have to do is lay your ruler straight across it horizontally, and then vertically, and mark the lines. The board needs vertical and horizontal lines that go through the middle of each side of the board, essentially dividing it in half along the horizontal and vertical middle lines, but leaving the center of the smallest square completely blank. The small cross in the middle is very useful for drawing the last lines. Okay, there’s only a few lines left to draw before you have a complete Nine Men’s Morris board, but before you draw them you should erase the diagonal lines, leaving only the small cross that marks the middle of the board, like this: I measured 2 inches up each each line, from the outside corners for the middle square, and then another 2 inches for the inmost square.Īs soon as you have all the marks, simply join them up nice and neatly and there you have all three squares – nearly finished! Once the diagonal lines are drawn in you need to measure up them and make two marks one for the middle square, and one for the inner square. I went hunting for something longer, and ended up using a box edge.* *NOTE: with a 9″ x 9″ square a regular 30cm ruler will not be long enough to draw these diagonal lines. So I drew two diagonal lines, dividing the square into four triangles: Standard, boring large square.īecause Nine Men’s Morris has three squares in it and I’m a little OCD, my next step was to ensure the proper spacing of the squares. I went for one that was 9″ x 9″ as it filled the space quite nicely without being too big. You should start by measuring out a square on your paper. Plenty of space – either a clear table or big wooden floor.
A pencil (I recommend a mechanical one).A large A3 or similar sized pad of paper (in which you can store all the games you make).However, this game has achieved worldwide popularity across the ages, with three variations existing Three Men’s Morris, Six Men’s Morrisand Twelve Men’s Morris. The dating of this is dubious as to its accuracy however, as Coptic Crosses were also found carved there which could not possibly have been put there by the Egyptians of the time. A board for it was found cut into a wall in the temple at Kurna, in Egypt which dates to 1440 BC. No one really knows Nine Men’s Morris is in the running with Chess and Gofor one of the oldest games in the world. Time Required: 30 minutes Where Did The Game Come From?