What Is a Planchette? The Pointer and the Board

A small moving object with a large role: shape, window, balance and the history of a name.

A pointer, not a miniature board

A planchette is the small piece that moves over a talking board to indicate letters, numbers or answers. The word comes from French and means “little board”. Early devices associated with the term could also carry a pencil and produce writing on paper; the pointer used on a lettered board is a related but distinct application.

The 1891 Bond patent describes a hand-operated table with a projecting pointer, rather than prescribing the modern heart shape or a glass window. Its felt-covered feet were already a practical detail: movement and protection of the board surface mattered from the beginning.

Window, point and legibility

Some planchettes indicate a character with a pointed tip. Others use a small viewing window or lens. A window only works well when letters remain visible beneath it; the dimensions of the planchette and the alphabet therefore have to be planned together. A beautiful shape that hides every letter is poor design.

The underside matters as much as the decoration. A flat, stable piece that glides without scraping is easier to handle. The right feel depends on the board finish and on the material in contact with it. Do not assume one type of felt or foot is right for every surface.

Made as a pair

A board and a planchette are two parts of one composition. Their motifs may echo one another, while the pointer must remain easy to read and comfortable to touch. This is why a custom planchette can be more than a decorative extra: it changes the way the whole object is experienced.

If you commission one for an existing board, measure the letter spacing and tell the maker which characters the window needs to reveal. Share photographs of the board as well as its dimensions. That information is more useful than choosing a silhouette alone.