A Comprehensive Guide to Mahjong Tile Sets

by Michael Stanwick

Quick Introduction

(1) The purpose of this site is to provide information about the Mahjong tile set for interested collectors, researchers and students of the game, as well as anyone who would like to know more about a tile set in their possession.

(2) In the Navigation Bar across the top of this page you will see links to the major sections of this site.

These links are described below to help you navigate this site. Please read these descriptions before you proceed.

(3) Immediately below this Quick Introduction is a News section where you can catch up on current additions, as well as the latest events happening in the world of the Mahjong tile set for researchers and collectors.

(4) At the bottom of this page I have given a brief synopsis of, and Useful Links to, other web sites devoted to the tile set.

Contact me:

michael@stanwicks.co.uk

[Please note this website does not retain any personal information]

Some Trivia

The tile set is one component of a game that is known by many different names, pronunciations and spellings. For example:

In the West;

Mahjong, Mah Jong, Mahjongg, Mah-Jongg, Mah Jongg, Majong, Ma Jong.

In the East;

Ma Que 麻雀, Ma Qiao 麻雀, Mah Diao, Peng Hu 碰和, Mah Tseuk, Mah Cheuk, Ma Chiang 麻將 and Ma Jiang 麻將.

Latest News

22/7/2021

Updates and correction edits are still ongoing. Articles from The Mahjong Collector magazine that offer a potted history of the game will continue to be added as time permits.

20/06/19

Three new tile sets have been added to the Garland Price Gallery, found under the Private Collections tab at the top of the Home page. Enjoy.

01/05/2019

NEW. Since The Mahjong Collector magazine has now ceased publication, its space on this Home page will now be used for short examinations of various attributes of Mahjong tile sets – from an aesthetic and historical perspective – as well as showcasing the types of differences that are exhibited by the patterns on tiles found in tile sets. This section is labelled Fascinating Mahjong(g) Tiles.…Read More

30/12/18

Update. Completed the next page of Tony Watson’s MJ collection Gallery. See under Private Collections. Added another set to Garland Price Gallery. See under Private Collections.

Fascinating Mahjong(g) Tiles.

The Aesthetics and Language of Mahjong(g) Tiles.

Below are a group of eight high-end bone and bamboo “Flowers” tiles that were most probably produced sometime between 1920 and 1925.

Attesting to their quality is a bone thickness of 1cm and a bamboo thickness of 4mm at the end and 1mm beneath the dovetail. Further, the bone shows no evidence of the Haversian System.

Reading from right to left the top row of four tiles are; 寶蟾送酒, bǎo chán sòng jiǔ “Precious Moon presents wine”. According to material provided by Ray Heaton, the name bǎo chán [Precious Moon] is the name of a female character in, and may be the name of, a Chinese opera from circa 1917 – the opera being an episode from the 18th century novel “Dream of the Red Chamber” by Cao Xueqin and perhaps adapted by or starring Ouyang Yuqian, a famous actor and playwright. In the opera the character bǎo chán [Precious Moon] is called ‘Moonbeam’.

The second row of tiles, from right to left are; 千金一笑, qiān jīn yī xiào “a thousand pieces of gold/daughter, a smile”. Perhaps translated to “a thousand pieces of gold [is worth] one smile”. According to Ray Heaton, another translation is “A beauty’s smile is without price” and there may be an opera of this title, probably taken from the 1598 The Peony Pavillion by Tang Xianzu. There is also a reference to a short story from “Slapping the Table in Amazement” called “A Rich Man Pays a Thousand Pieces of Gold to Win a Beauty’s Smile”, 富翁千金一笑. [With special thanks to Ray Heaton].

What you can find on this site:

Tile Set History:

The early appearances and developments of the tile set are presented in eight articles using documentary evidence, with pictures of key tile sets – among them the earliest so far discovered and documented.

Six of these articles originally appeared in The Playing-card, the Journal of the International Playing Card Society. The last article argues for a link between the suits of early Chinese playing cards and the suits of the early mo ziang tile set (what became known as Mahjong).

Another link may also be found in the names used for an 18th century card game and the 19th century mo ziang game, and this is discussed in the next article ‘máquè/májiàng/Mahjong terms 1780-1920’.

The discussion in this article also highlights the geographical spread of the card game of máquè and the tile game of mo ziang as well as identifying the social conditions and the social vectors that aided that spread.

China to the West:

This article documents the introduction to the West of one of the most popular versions of the Chinese game of 麻雀, má qiǎo (sparrow(s), má què in modern Pinyin).

This introduction is explained via the fortuitous meetings of J. P. Babcock, A. R. Hager and A. N. Lethin and their formation of the Mah-Jongg Company of China, of San Francisco and the Continental Mah-Jongg Sales Co., – as well as their patents and trademarks.

This article is thoroughly referenced throughout and also features photos of the individuals mentioned above.

Money-Suited Cards:

This section describes and illustrates Chinese money-suited playing cards from which the tile set suits most probably were derived. Some of these examples date from the 19th century. Also featured is an example of a Late Qing four suited ma diao deck. A brief introduction describes the construction and explains the meaning of the names of the individual suits.

Tile Set Galleries:

Gallery 1.0. Tile sets that share the same structure as the Himly/Glover sets (1868 – 1876).

Gallery 1.1. Tile sets that share the structure of Wilkinson/Laufer sets (1889 – 1901).

Gallery 2.0. Tile sets that share the same structure as the Culin tile set (1909). This Gallery is in turn divided into 5 Sub-galleries, based on tile material composition;

1. Bamboo.

2. Bone and Bamboo. Because sets of this composition were so plentiful, this Sub-gallery is further divided up into Galleries based on container types. Thus;

Slide-fronted Cabinets.
Top-opening Boxes.
Slide-top Boxes.
Attaché-style Cases.

3. Ivory and Bamboo.

4. Bone and Ebony.

5. Synthetic.

Guest Contributions.

1. Alternative Tile Sets.

Literature:

Presented here, in three categories, are illustrations of key research documents and texts, including additional books on Chinese symbolism and character translation for the novice. Also included are examples of the booklets commonly found with tile sets exported from China, as well as some of the earliest key texts and manuals in English.

Materials and Translations:

This section features a catalogue of materials used in tile manufacture. The list – consisting of pictured examples and detailed texts describing their properties, manufacturing history and use – is probably not exhaustive. An excellent introduction into the diversity of materials for making tiles. (A page featuring key tiles and the translations of their sinograms will be added in due course.)

Mahjong Racks Gallery:

This Gallery contains a small selection of Tile Racks composed of mainly wood – either plainly painted or lacquered or painted and lacquered with intricate designs overpainted into the paint or lacquer. Also featured are Racks of a very simple design and made of metal and varnished wooden Racks of complex construction.

Useful Links

Comprehensive site for the Romance of Three Kingdoms novel

This site is run by James Peirce. Highly recommended.

www.kongming.net

A Site Showcasing a Personal Collection

This site showcases examples from the collection of a European collector. The examples highlight materials, locations and companies that produced tile sets. Easy to navigate with a mouse-over zoom facility for the tile set displays, accessories and books.

http://www.mahjonggsite.com/here/en/

Card Games and Tile Games from Around the World

A comprehensive resource for those interested in the many card and tile games from around the world. Highly recommended.

http://www.pagat.com

Playing Cards and Dominoes in China and South East Asia

This is the parent site that has excellent displays of Chinese playing cards as well as examples from S. E Asia. The site creator has provided a brief description;

My website is about Playing cards (and Dominoes) of Chinese origin and their variants in South East Asia.
The playing cards are presented by type and by country.
You can also browse my collection through the “Decks” option :
Decks : browse the decks classified by type and sub-type.
Cards : see the variants of a specific card through all the decks.
Patterns : browse the different patterns.
References : identify the decks cited in 3 major references of Chinese playing cards.
Regions : see in which region the different decks are used.
Dimensions : compare the cards’ relative dimensions
Explore : explore the different type of decks.
For those who don’t speak Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai, and English (like me!) : they can specify their preferred language … when available, texts will be translated !

Click on the link below and select ‘Banknotes’ from the menu provided. This will take you to the money-suited playing cards to which mahjong/ma jiang belongs.

Explore this excellent site for other cards and for a breakdown of card development.

http://onebadworld.fr/cards/index.htm

Chinese Money-suited Playing Cards

This is a direct link to the Chinese money-suited playing cards page from the Playing Cards and Dominoes in China and South East Asia website listed immediately above.

http://perso.numericable.fr/onebadcards/g-suits.htm

Stewart Culin's Publications

This important site provides access to Culin’s major contributions to Chinese games and, in particular, to his 1924 paper on Mah Jong. Also featured is a paper that describes Glover’s 1875 tile set.

http://gamesmuseum.uwaterloo.ca/Archives/Culin/index.html

Sir W. H. Wilkinson's 1885 article

Sir W. H. Wilkinson’s paper form the 1885 American Anthropologist Journal. This is one of the earliest papers in English that deals with Chinese money-suited playing cards, and provides an insight into the probable link between these cards and the Mah Jong tile set.

http://www.gamesmuseum.uwaterloo.ca/Archives/Wilkinson/index.html

Flower Tiles Interpretation/Tile Art & Designs/Blog

A website showcasing mahjong sets, with interpretations of the art on the tiles, racks and boxes. Translations of the Flower tiles, and the stories behind them will also be featured when appropriate. When possible, sets will be placed in their historical context.
Submissions of photographs and ideas for articles are welcome.

http://www.mahjongtreasures.com

Tile Sets/Missing Tile Replacements/Joker Stickers/Helpful Hints etc.

This site has a Museum containing examples of many types of tile sets and their boxes. Also available is a facility to help people replace missing tiles and acquire “simply the best” joker stickers, as well as a service for making stickers for missing tiles – if an exact tile is not available from the site’s owner. There is a section where people can identify the label of a typical American set and also included are some helpful hints on buying and cleaning tiles.
Tile sets are also for sale from time to time.

http://www.charli.org

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions/Bulletin Board for Collectors & Players.

This American site has answers to all the most frequently asked questions about mah-jongg. It also includes bulletin boards for getting answers and finding players or teachers.”

http://www.sloperama.com/mjfaq.html

Like what you see?

Please note that I hold the Copyright to all material on this site. If you wish to use or quote any material please feel free to ask me and, if granted, credit me in the appropriate reference. I constructed this web site to disseminate the knowledge it contains to those interested in the subject. Please feel free to donate to help me maintain this service.