The Indo-German Legacy Racquet

Earliest Form of Badminton

Manuf.: Indo-German Racquet Manufactory

Model: The Antique Battledore

Spec.: Solid wood, antique battledore

Year: 1648

(documented or estimated)

Background facts:

The Indo-German Legacy Racquet belongs to a tradition of equipment used for early forms of court tennis, a game that enjoyed popularity among European aristocracy from the Renaissance onward. Such racquets were characterized by a rounded wooden head with a loosely strung gut mesh, typical of early court tennis equipment used in aristocratic circles during the 16th and 17th centuries. Evidence of this style appears in mid-16th-century portraiture, including depictions of noble children holding similar racquets, such as the well-known drawing of Charles Maximilian, later Charles IX of France, from 1552.

In 1648, the Peace of Westphalia ended the Thirty Years’ War and introduced a lasting system of international diplomacy, enabling states to maintain stable relations and commerce. Today, this racquet reflects the continuity of aristocratic leisure during a time when political order was restored and cultural life regained its prominence.