Since the first chess stamp was issued in 1947, over 200 Jewish chess stamps, souvenir sheets, covers and postmarks have been issued by about 35 nations. Many of these Jewish chess stamps honored world champions from Wilhelm Steinitz to Garry Kasparov. General chess philately encompassed about 600 items as of 1994. Judaica philately, irrespective of chess, has also burgeoned; there were perhaps 10,000 stamps devoted to Jewish topics as of 1998.
More than 100 stamps, souvenir sheets and covers from nearly 30 countries are featured in this richly illustrated work. Part One discusses general philately, chess philately and Judaica chess philately. Part Two is comprised of 20 short essays on famous Jewish chess players such as Steinitz, Lasker, Tal and Kasparov. Part Three describes Israeli chess events that were commemorated on Israeli postage stamps, covers and postmarks. Part Four details and annotates 17 historic chess games whose positions are depicted on stamps, souvenir sheets and covers. The Jewish chess phenomenon is discussed in Part Five.
