I have three Golden Castle sets. I don't think this is one.
I'd be interested in seeing better profiles of the box and pieces once you get them, as well as height and base dimensions. How tall are the kings, by the way?
Thanks cgrau -
Sadly, I think I agree with you. The king is 3" knight is 2" tall. That's all the extra info I have at the moment. Just so odd that it has what looks like an authentic label.
I own a GC Craftsman and I agree w/ Chuck - this is definitely not a GC set. Looks like a modern day Indian set. Who knows how and why a GC label got attached to this set...
Even if it's not what you thought you were buying, fifty dollars for the set and coffer seems like a great deal.
50 Bucks with coffer is a steal.! The set looks fantastic.!!
Consulted with another chess guru, Marco Dorland. Here's what he had to say:
"This is an Indian made copy of a GC set. Check out the regular Staunton sets from Indian origin and you will see the resemblance. Some US "experts" are in touch with the commercial makers an advised them which types are hot and not. This is the end result of such efforts. Not a bad set, but clearly to let people believe they are buying a valuable GC set... The labels are easy to copy and that's what they did."
I was duped 
If you were in my shoes... would you keep it?
What are you sniveling about!!! I have seen worse sets go for more than 50 bucks unless you are lying about the price you paid!
I'd keep it for what it is. An Indian attempt to pass off a not-so-accurate reproduction of an iconic set, complete with that bizarre label.
By the way, Official Staunton is expected to offer a reproduction of the Golden Castle Craftsman set, based on an original owned by a collector in Singapore. I expect it to be an accurate reproduction.
Good to know, Cgrau!
Got the pieces today. A few more chips than I expected, but quite nice on the whole. They could use some cleaning, some polish, and maybe a bit of restoration work (is it worth it? y/n?). They're weighted and the carving is quite nice, though I don't like the collars on the pawns. They're finished to a point so thin they're actually sharp! Some pictures I snapped this evening:
The label...
The Knights! Check out that expression 
Kings, out of focus. This is actually a picture of the knight in the background:
Overall, pretty happy with the pieces!
Cheers!
A few days ago I won a chess set on ebay. I was thrilled because it was not listed very well but the label --visible in one of the photos -- clearly read "The Craftsman" and is signed T.C. Statashi. You can imagine my excitement when, as the only bidder, I nabbed the pieces for a reasonable 2 digit number.
But - and I knew this going in - there are some rather odd details to the pieces that have me questioning what it is exactly that I purchased.
Photos (from seller, I wont receive the pieces for a few days yet), below:
"Golden Castle" on the label is crossed out in permanent marker. Why?
The pieces come in a coffer unlike the typical Golden Castle felt-lined box with 2 compartments. This is a single compartment, but the pieces do seem to fit correctly into their spots, so I suspect the pieces and the box are a original match.
The dark pieces appear to be ROSEWOOD, and the light pieces seem to be boxwood. I emailed briefly with Frank Camaratta from Chess Antiques, who is obviously quite knowledgable on the topic, and he had this to say: "All Golden Castle sets, regardless of the model, are clear and black Lacquered Tsuge wood native to Japan. My guess is that this is a modern-day knock-off. " But why the label? Maybe it was taken from another box? The seller claims to know nothing about chess sets, and I believe them based on the way it was listed so if it was a scam it was a poor one.
Looking at the pieces, I cannot help but think that the carving style is VERY close to pictures I've seen of Golden Castle sets. Obviously the knight is a bit different, but look at the lines next to the knight's eyes, the teeth/lips/mouth of the horse's face. The shape of the bishops, kings, queens... If this is a knock off it is excellent, right?
So what's going on here? Is it...
I'm really eager to know what I have here. First thing I do when they get here is check for a signature on the base of the king, but otherwise I'm not sure what other clues i can follow. So I leave it to you chess aficionados and collectors. Do you have any info? Do you recognize this set? Thank you in advance for any help you can throw my way! I'll post more pictures when it arrives.
Dan