Chess has fascinated people for centuries. There is evidence that a very similar game was played in the 6th and 7th centuries. It probably originated in India, spread to Persia, and thence to the Levant. By the 13th century that game was played all over the continent. The modern game dates from the 1400s. The story of this wonderful game is told by Colleen Schafroth, director of the Maryhill Museum of Art in Goldendale, Washington, which owns a famous collection of chess pieces and sets. She tells her story in an easy and colorful style, illustrating it with pictures of historic and beautiful chess men from an international array of sources. There are pieces that were made in India and Russia, Bali and ancient Persia, Italy and Egypt, England and France. Both Napoleon and Nelson's ivory sets are illustrated. Besides the chess pieces themselves, there are exquisite objects and illuminated manuscripts and paintings depicting chess games in progress. This is a wonderful combination of text and pictures that will appeal to any chess player and to all dealers and collectors of chess pieces and related art.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Stunningly intricate chess pieces from as early as the 10th century are on display in The Art of Chess, Maryhill Museum of Art director Colleen Schafroth's beautifully illustrated homage to one of the world's oldest and most popular pastimes. Schafroth traces the evolution of the game from its origins in India, to its first golden age under the Arab caliphate, to the birth of the (much faster) modern version in 15th-century Europe. Photos of chessmen from around the world include an ivory Inuit set featuring igloos and seals, and a Soviet version that pits capitalists (and their enchained pawns) against the vigorous country lads who represent the Soviets.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Historian Schafroth offers an engaging history of the game of chess. She traces its migration from India and/or China to Persia and Europe via the Islamic world, noting how the design of the pieces was influenced by each culture. Polytheistic India created floridly representational figures, while Islamic disapproval of the human image resulted in the sculpting of more abstract pieces. In this contextual vein, Schafroth's pictured sets include a Soviet porcelain ensemble pitting capitalists against proletarians, and many modeled on medieval society's knights, bishops, and peons. The craftsmanship of these sets is another focus of the album: carved from bone, ivory, and crystal, chess sets were menageries of statuary for the kings who ordered them. As the game gained in popularity, the design of its pieces became more functional: the Staunton design, with its iconic horse head for the knight, dates from the mid-1800s. The handsome photographs in Schafroth's showcase will hold chess lovers rapt. Gilbert Taylor
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent coverage of period chess pieces,
By
This review is from: The Art of Chess (Hardcover)
Having been looking for historical chess pieces for several years I chanced across this book and wondered why there aren't several others covering this topic. The history of chess pieces is a much under documented topic and the Art of Chess covers the evolution of chess pieces very well. Highly recommended.
2 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Nice book for the coffeetable,
By A_2007_reader (Vladivostok, Russia) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Art of Chess (Hardcover)
Nice photos for a coffetable book. Just make sure you get the hardcover.
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