Geography

I have previously made much of A Journey Through Europe, published in 1759, and the first boardgame in the English language to which we can ascribe an individual designer; I called it "the first designed game," and Rob Rossney quite rightly pointed out that the card game of Cribbage was designed sometime around 1630 by Sir John Suckling. But at least until now, Journey was the first designed boardgame of which I know.

Globetrotter XL is a geography quiz game, which may sound dull, but is actually quite engaging.

The play area is a map of the word -- initially, with borders in place. Your mouse pointer is a crosshairs, and the game names a city (e.g., Bologna, Italy). You've got a few seconds to locate and click on it. You are scored by how close you get, with a bonus for doing it quickly.

This game you cannot play, I'm afraid -- at least, not unless you possess a time machine, and can travel to the premises of Carrington Bowles in mid-18th century London to purchase it, or you are among the handful of people lucky enough to own one of the few extant copies of the game. Lacking that, you will have to be satisfied with the image at left (a more detailed one here). It's a scan of the board as it appears in Table Games of Georgian and Victorian Days, which is my primary source on the subject.