Any particular thing when given a certain modification becomes more interesting then it was before. Change is necessary to get the best interest towards that particular thing. Some of you might be very much into term called modification, and why not?! The things which become more evolved than before turn out to be beautiful in its own way.
So is in the terms of chess. You must be very bored or not exactly bored but be like that damn there should be some variation in the chess board(ouch no that will not be called as chess board it will be a rainbow board then!!!!)Or there should be a variation in the chess pieces.
So we have got for you the 5 classic as well as historical chess set designs.
As you all must be aware of the fact that there are enormous chess set designs designed in the world. You can find the details of this various chess sets types and designs from various chess books and other sources and from us too!!
Today we will pop our head into the world of chess set collecting by displaying five historical chess sets. Each set has been selected from the thousands of chess set collection across the world for its unique and iconic look as well as its usage in historical tournaments.
So let’s roll onto them:-
1) LARDY SET
2) FIDE World Championship Set
3) SOVIET SET
4) JAQUES SET
5) DUBROVNIK SET
1)LARDY SET
The lardy chess set was invented in France in 1890 and made chess sets and other items until closing in 2992, but it exported a large number of these STAUNTON chess sets in the 1950s and 1960s to the U.S, England and other countries.
According to the rules of chess, this style is to be used for competitions. The journalist Nathaniel Cooke is credited with the design, and they are named after the English chess master Howard Staunton. The first 500 sets were hand signed and numbered by Staunton. This style of set was first made available by Jaques of London in 1849, and they quickly became the standard. They have been used around the world since.
The ebony and boxwood sets were weighted with lead to provide added stability and the underside of each piece was covered with felt, allowing the pieces to slide easily across the board. Some ivory sets were made from African ivory. The king sizes ranged from 3½ to 4½ inches and the sets typically came in a papier-mâché case, each one bearing a facsimile of Staunton's signature under the lid.
The Staunton pieces broadly resemble columns with a wide molded base. Knights feature the sculpted head and neck of a horse. Kings, the tallest pieces, top the column with a stylized closed crown topped with a cross pattée. Queens are slightly smaller than kings, and feature a coronet topped with a tiny ball (a monde). Rooks feature stylized crenellated battlements and bishops a Western-style mitre. Pawns are the smallest and are topped by a plain ball. Pieces representing human characters (the king, queen, bishop, and pawn) have a flat disk separating the body from the head design; this is called a collar.
The FIDE World Championship chess set is the fresh and most polarizing set on this list- some adore this set while other dislike it. It is still available for public purchase and was designed by the architect Daniel Weil.
The set was designed for the 2013 FIDE World Chess Championship between GM Vishwanathan Anand and GM Magnus Carlsen and was first introduced at the 2013 Candidates Tournament.
It is still being used in the top-tier FIDE events, including in the 2020 candidates and likely the 2021 World Championship match. It is modified Staunton design, with original and unique looking knights.
One should actually go after such amazing looking knights and pawns variation.
There are many Soviet and Russian sets and a very large community that collects them. The Tal set was used from the 1940s through the 1970s and was featured on the cover of Tal's book The Life and Games of Mikhail Tal. After the Tal set, there were multiple Grandmaster set design iterations that were being produced through 1990. These sets, and more, have all been used in various Soviet and Russian tournaments and international competitions throughout history, but the most iconic Soviet set is the Botvinnik-Flohr II set (also known as the BFII).
Aesthetically, the BFII is known for its swan-like knight profile, the absence of a cross on the top of the king (standard for most Soviet sets), and the slender tapered stems from the large bases on the king, queen, and bishop. The BFII is the target Soviet set for most chess set collectors because of its appearance, rarity, and historical significance. It was used longer than any other Soviet set and was featured in multiple international tournaments, multiple Soviet Championships, and the 1956 Moscow Olympiad. The BFII was initially introduced in the 1934 Leningrad tournament and is named after GM Mikhail Botvinnik and GM Salo Flohr because they tied for first place in the 1935 Moscow International tournament ahead of World Champions Emanuel Lasker and Jose Raul Capablanca.
4)JAQUES CHESS SET
Jaques sets are the crown jewel for most chess set collectors. This is the set design that standardized tournament chess sets and the Staunton design is the basis for almost all tournament sets today. Before the Jaques sets were introduced, many different types of chess sets were used in serious matches and club settings. Designs like the St. George and regency sets were quite popular before 1849, and probably difficult to play on.
The Staunton design was created by Nathaniel Cooke and was endorsed by the famous English master Howard Staunton. The sets were made by Jaques of London, who still create their sets today. Original Jaques sets have "Jaques London" stamped on the base of the king and have one knight and one rook stamped on the top of the piece to differentiate the "king's knight" or "king's rook" (This is for older forms of chess notation.).
Jaques sets became the standard chess set for clubs, matches, and serious competitions and were used in multiple world championship matches (including the 1972 Fischer-Spassky World Championship match). These sets are reproduced by many companies today, including the House of Staunton. Original Jaques sets are extremely expensive due to their rarity, age, and historical value.
The Dubrovnik design was initially introduced at the 1950 Dubrovnik Olympiad and was GM Bobby Fischer's favorite set. He is seen in many pictures and images using his Dubrovnik set, including his Life Magazine cover.
There were only 50 Dubrovnik sets originally created (one of these sets was used for the 1992 Fischer-GM Boris Spassky rematch), and the second design of Dubrovnik sets (also referred to as the Dubrovnik II) was released to the public in the 1970s. The incredible knight is one of the memorable design choices that make this set stand out. This set is known for its great durability, the fact that the pieces are smoother and have a more rounded feel (making it an excellent set to play with), and most notably the opposite-colored finials (the small orb or ball on top of the bishop). It should also be noted that most Dubrovnik sets do not have a cross on top of the King.
Original Dubrovnik sets are very rare and valuable. Many reproductions have been created for both versions of the Dubrovnik, but many chess set producers notoriously get the knight wrong (often making it look like a unicorn).
In the opinion of most Dubrovnik set collectors, the best reproductions are made by Noj (a family-owned company based out of Slovenia). Many feel that Gabriel Coss' reproduction is fantastic and that Staunton Castle's 1950 Dubrovnik reproduction (pictured below) is a strong reproduction as well.
So this was all about the best 5 sets in the chess history ever! Hope you enjoyed a brief look at these historical chess set designs and a peek into the world of chess set collecting. Which of these sets is your favorite? Do you have a favorite that didn't make this list? Let us know in the comments below!