parker brothers game pirates treasure 1930

The early 1930’s game of Pirates’ Treasure by Parker Brothers is a game for 2 to 4 players. The box cover shows two pirates burying a treasure chest in the sand. A third pirate is standing watch as they lower it down into the hole on the island.  Who will get to this treasure first?

The inside of the box consists of a raised game board with eight holes. These holes are scattered across the path that players will follow to reach the island.  Players move along the path according to a dice roll.

To begin the game, each player places six game pieces of their chosen color (red, blue, green, or yellow) on the red Start Here space. This space is in a circle with an illustration of a boat in the bottom right corner.

parker brothers pirates treasure game pieces and board

What is interesting is the boat in the illustration has ‘P&Q Soap, It Sinks’ written on its side.  It would seem this is an advertisement for the Philadelphia Quartz Company. This company, first launched in 1831 by Joseph Elkinton, was a soap and candle company back in the day. P&Q Soap can also be seen written on the boat in the background of the treasure island illustration players must move towards to win.

The game’s path twists and weaves throughout the board. Who will arrive at the Island of Treasure first and win? That is the object of the game; to have the first game piece reach the end of the path on the island and get the treasure!

Players begin with six game pieces which are small wooden discs. Players take turns rolling the two dice. Each die indicates a move for one of the game pieces. Players roll, and moves the highest roll of die first for a game piece. The lower roll of die moves next for a piece. For instance, if a player rolls a 5 and a 2, the player will move one of pieces first by 5, and then the next by 2.

If by exact count any of them lands on a hole, it disappears underneath and is lost at sea!

If a roll count exceeds a space with a hole, it is counted as a space and passes over the hole safely.

If a player’s roll lands by an exact count which another piece is on, a player takes his opponent’s piece and drops it in the sea to be lost.

If a player loses all 6 of his pieces, he is out of the game.

The first player to arrive on the island with any one piece wins the game!

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