The town of Eger in southern Germany was the centre of a specialised type of woodworking in the 17th century. Here, craftsmen created detailed pictures, using layers of carefully selected woods which were glued on to a background and then carved to make a relief marquetry panel. It was known as Egerwork. This highly artistic and painstaking work was mainly used to decorate altar fronts, luxury cabinets and gamesboards. Egerwork panels are usually highly detailed and the battle scene on the cover of this board is typical. In contrast, the backgammon board has been made by laying strips of veneer into a base panel to produce a flush surface. This is known as inlaid marquetry.