1 May 2012
13:00 BST
London, Knightsbridge
Chess Sets, Playing Cards and Games
Back to auction 19802
Chess Sets, Playing Cards and Games
Back to auction 19802
A carved wooden figural chess set,
Mongolian, late 19th century,
one side with faint green highlights, the other side with yellow, kings on thrones, queens as dogs or lions, bishops as dromedaries (with two humps), knights as horse, rooks as waggons or juggernauts, pawns as small lions or dogs, with a blue and cream cloth board, (two dromedary bishops likely to be later replacements),
the king 4.6cm high, the pawn 2cm high. (2).
one side with faint green highlights, the other side with yellow, kings on thrones, queens as dogs or lions, bishops as dromedaries (with two humps), knights as horse, rooks as waggons or juggernauts, pawns as small lions or dogs, with a blue and cream cloth board, (two dromedary bishops likely to be later replacements),
the king 4.6cm high, the pawn 2cm high. (2).
Sold for
£1,000
inc. premium
Footnotes
- A rare Mongolian chess set.
Reference: A.E.G. Mackett-Beeson, "Chessmen", Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1967, figure 105: "very rare Mongolian pieces carved from wood at the beginning of the Twentieth Century..."
Gareth Williams, "Masterpieces", Quintet Publishing, 2000: "The Mongolians have a tradition of carving their sets based on the culture of their local society. As each set is individually carved, rarely are two sets exactly the same. The names of the chessmen also alter to some extent, depending on the district the set originates from...the queen is a tiger, and the king a local leader, camels are always two humped bactrians, the horses are normally, like the camels, without riders, and the rook is usually a cart or a symbol of movement..."
Category: Collectibles / Toys and Dolls
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