Mount Ararat Travel Chess and Backgammon Set with Bronze Pieces

Mount Ararat Travel Chess and Backgammon Set with Bronze Pieces — Handmade in Armenia

Openwork bronze pieces stand on this travel chess and backgammon set, a dark-stained board with Mount Ararat in pale relief beside the carry handle at each end, lattice bands down the sides and the map of Armenia inlaid inside. 30 × 30 cm / 11.8″ × 11.8″ open, handmade in Armenia from beech, with checkers, dice and a bag.

This is the wooden chess set that puts a metal army in a small case. Each piece is a pierced bronze casting in a gold tone on a turned wooden base — pale for one side, dark for the other — with real heft under the fingers. Round them, the peaks sit beside each handle with their snow in the pale wood, C-scrolls curl at the corners, and the coordinates are brass discs.

Open it and the backgammon field is inside, the map of Armenia drawn province by province in pale wood at the centre of each half, with lifting slots where the handles come through. The bronze pieces ship in a satin-lined wooden box; checkers, dice and the bag complete the set.

Specifications

• Size: 30 × 30 cm / 11.8″ × 11.8″
• Material: beech wood, dark-stained, with inlaid pale and brown squares
• Carving: Mount Ararat in pale relief beside the handle at each end, C-scroll corners, lattice side bands, rope border, waved edge, brass coordinate discs; inlaid points and the map of Armenia inside
• Pieces: 32 openwork cast bronze chess pieces on turned wooden bases, 16 pale and 16 dark; 32 wooden backgammon checkers; pair of dice
• Folded: 15 × 30 cm / 5.9″ × 11.8″
• Carry handle: cut through each end, with lifting slots in the side rails inside
• Hardware: bronze hinges and clasps
• Craftsmanship: handmade in Armenia

What's Included

• Folding carved beech board — chess outside, backgammon inside
• 32 cast bronze chess pieces on wooden bases, 16 pale and 16 dark, in a satin-lined wooden box
• 32 wooden backgammon checkers and a pair of dice
• Carrying bag

Why You'll Love It

• Bronze in a travel case: a pierced metal army on a board that folds to a slim case with a handle at each end.
• Armenia inside: the map, province by province, inlaid in pale wood in both halves of the backgammon field.
• Ararat by the grip: the peaks in pale relief beside each handle, with scrolls and lattice round the rest.

Good to Know Before You Buy

Are the pieces solid bronze? Cast bronze, pierced and gold-toned, on turned wooden bases — pale one side, dark the other — with far more heft than wooden pieces of this size. The peaks, scrolls, lattice and rope border are cut into the beech, and the pale mountain and map are the bare wood showing through the stain. Nothing is printed.

What about shipping and returns? Shipping is free worldwide and tracked. Every set is covered by our 30-day returns policy.

How do I look after it? Keep it out of direct sunlight and away from radiators. Wipe with a dry, soft cloth and store it closed.

Also known as nardi (нарды), nardy, tavla or shesh besh.