8 Oldest chess sets ever produced!

Hello dear readers,

Today I would like to talk to you about one of the oldest and most fascinating games in the world: chess. But instead of just talking about the rules and strategies, I would like to take you into the fascinating stories and legends behind the chess pieces. Because every figure on the chessboard has a story to tell that goes far beyond the game.

Dive with me into the fascinating world of chess and discover the secrets behind the kings, queens, rooks and pawns. Let's travel back in time together and bring the stories behind the chess pieces to life.

Chess was very popular among the Russian upper class and seems to have been brought from India in the 9th century.  This complete set is said to have originated in the late 18th century in Kolmogory, a Russian town famous for its sculptors. It should be noted that it differs from the contemporary collection in several important aspects. The two parties represent Muslim and Christian Russians and differ in style rather than color. Instead of a queen, there is a vizier. Ships stand in for rooks, and the bishop piece is represented by elephants.

Did You Know?

The bishop piece is a relatively modern European invention. In early and non-European chess sets, that piece was represented by an elephant.

This fragile ivory set is primarily decorative and not intended for play.  The opposing sides are represented by the Indians on one side and the British on the other, reflecting the political realities of the time. 

Interestingly, the elephant/bishop has been replaced by a lion on the British side and a rhinosceros on the Indian side. Knights are represented by a British calavryman and an Indian cameleer. The pawns are represented by British and Indian soldiers, respectively. 

Did You Know?

In Indian chess sets, the bishop is often represented by a camel.

This incredibly detailed set was discovered in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland in 1891. However, it is believed to have originated in Trondheim, the capital of medieval Norway. At the time this work was created, Norway ruled the Hebrides, and pieces in a similar style from the same period have been found in Trondheim.

There are 79 pieces in total, with multiple kings, queens, and other pieces indicating that they were part of multiple sets.

This, along with their lack of wear,  has led some historians to speculate that they were part of a merchant’s inventory, somehow lost en route from Norway to Ireland. This set contains the oldest known ecclesiastical bishop.

Did You Know?

This set was found in Uig Parish on the Isle of Lewis and is known as both the Lewis Chessmen and the Uig Chessmen. 

Emperor Charlemagne himself died at least three centuries before the game was invented and probably never played chess. However, his name was given to a beautiful ivory carving believed to have been made in Salerno, Italy, in the late 11th century. 

It is speculated that the pieces were a gift to a French king, either Philip II or Philip III. From the 13th century the end of the 18th, the set resided in the Saint Denis Abbey near Naples, and was brought to Paris in 1794. 

Unfortunately, several pieces were lost during the French Revolution. Today, the set consists of two kings, two queens, four elephants, four knights, three chariots and one foot soldier. 

Did You Know?

The game’s Indian heritage is clear from the elephant pieces, but the military equipment is 11th century Norman.

Chess is believed to have been brought from Baghdad to Muslim Spain in the 800s and spread throughout Europe. This assemblage was discovered in Aguerre, Spain, but the rocks from which it is made indicate that it originated outside of Spain, possibly in Egypt.

Also known as the Urgel or Urgell chess pieces, this set, named after a nearby town in Catalonia, has unfortunately been split up and some pieces have disappeared entirely. Some will stay in Ager, while others will be in Lerida, Spain. At the end of the 19th century, some of them were brought to Paris, put up for auction and bought by the King of Kuwait. They remain in Kuwait to this day.

Did You Know?

This set originally belonged to Arnau Mir de Tost, lord of Àger, and his wife, who owned many works of Islamic art.

St. Mozarabic chess pieces, also known as Gennadio pieces, may be as old as the early 10th century. The term Mozarab refers to the Spanish Christians who lived under Islamic rule from the 8th to the 11th centuries. Bishop Gennadio of Astorga (900-936) was the first Christian saint to play chess.

According to popular legend, this pieces were his. They remained under the care of the Monastery of San Miguel de la Escalada in Leon, Spain.

Did You Know?

The Mozarab represented a combination of Islamic and European influences and has become known as a distinct architecture and artistic style.

Discovered in 1932 and dating back to the 9th-11th centuries, these 19 chess pieces are considered the oldest chess pieces in Europe.

Interestingly, they were found in much older Roman tombs. Benafro was conquered by Islamic forces in the 9th and 10th centuries, so it is no wonder that the game of Arabic chess is played in Italy.

But how they ended up in the ancient Roman tombs remains a mystery.

Did You Know?

It is thought that over time, the two tusks of the elephant (an animal that most Europeans wouldn’t have been familiar with) gradually turned into a shape thought to resemble a bishop’s miter, hence the modern bishop piece.

Chess player Afrasiab is the oldest chess player. Among the many treasures discovered in the excavations at Afrasaib in present-day Uzbekistan, the oldest version of chess was Chataranga, which consisted of seven pieces. Archaeologist Yuriy F. discovered it. Buryakov dates them to the beginning of the 8th century.

The pieces consist of a king, chariot (rook), vizier (queen), horse (knight), elephant (bishop), and 2 soldiers (pawns).

Did You Know?

The word “rook” comes from the Persian “rukh,” meaning chariot