Handcrafted Russian chess sets

July 19, 2004 11:08 AM

A large catalog of interesting handmade Russian chess sets.Some that caught my eye: Soviet vs. American; "Soviet-Fascist Chess" (note the kings); and American vs. Russian politicians (note the American queen).
posted by Prospero (5 comments total)

These are ugly.
posted by lazy-ville at 11:15 AM on July 19, 2004

I disagree. And, if anyone wants to buy me a present, look no further than here.
posted by Daddio at 11:54 AM on July 19, 2004

On closer examination, most of the stuff in their catalogue is not ugly. But the ones specifically linked to are.
posted by lazy-ville at 1:37 PM on July 19, 2004

I recall seeing similar sets available pretty widely in St. Petersburg, at a fraction of these prices. For $1750, I suspect that one could buy airline tickets to there and buy that set in person.
posted by kickingtheground at 3:07 PM on July 19, 2004

Great find, Propsero.

A chess player I knew said he found playing with these kinds of sets maddening. He'd forget his strategy trying to remember which was the knight, which was the rook.

I'm still searching their catalogue for a Canada-USSR hockey series chess set. Vladislav Tretiak as king...
posted by philfromhavelock at 7:56 PM on July 19, 2004