Uncovering the mystery of the the characters on the flower and season tiles in this vintage mahjong set.

The Ningbo Mahjong Museum is in a beautiful garden setting and tells one story of the evolution of the game. There are many complete sets on display from China, Japan, Korea, the US and the UK, but without dating or boxes or catalogue. Read up before you go!

A 1924 British mahjong set that tells us the game was not only wildly popular but that many rule books had already been written.

Wind indicators allow players to keep track of their changing seat wind as well as the round wind. We explain how.

Not all sets have picture tiles and their inclusion has a contested history

Popularly known overseas as ‘dragon’ tiles, these red, green and white tiles have been associated with Confucian values and with the Imperial court.

Mahjong spread overseas from Shanghai to become a 1920’s craze.

Mahjong evolved from a long line of dice and card games, using bamboo tiles that were already popularised.

Ningbo claims a leading role in the history of mahjong.

Taicang in Zhejiang claims to be the original site of mahjong.