Jeu de paume
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Jeu de paume was a ball-and-court game that originated in France and was the precursor of real tennis and ultimately of the modern game of tennis. Jeu de paume was played without racquets, and so was
Jeu de paume in the 17th century.
Late 18th-century illustration of jeu de paume paddle-bats or battoirs, and (in various stages of construction) strung racquets.
Earliest known picture of Jeu de Paume from a Book of Hours (c. 1300)
A modernised court in the Palace of Fontainebleau, Fontainebleau (1991).
Jeu de paume was an event contested at the 1908 Summer Olympics, the only time the Summer Olympic Games featured the sport as a medal event.
Jeu de paume
…paume or just courte paume ("short palm") to distinguish it from the outdoor version, longue paume ("long palm"), played on a field of variable length. At the 1908 Summer Olympics, jeu de paume was a medal event: American Jay Gould II won the gold medal. Since 1740, jeu de paume has been the subject of an amateur world championship…
Gold medallist Jay Gould II, pictured in 1905 with racket.