Luxury Mount Ararat Chess and Backgammon Set with Brass-Mounted Pieces — Handmade in Armenia
Mount Ararat fills the lower panel of this luxury chess and backgammon set, carved in relief under the field with grape clusters and vine leaves down both sides and a cast brass carry handle on the front edge — chess outside, nardi inside, 32 brass-mounted pieces. 23.6 × 23.6 in (60 × 60 cm) open, handmade in Armenia from beech.
This is the wooden chess set where the mountain gets the whole foreground. The peaks are snow-capped in the pale wood and the slopes run out to a rope border on a stippled ground; grapes hang in each corner with their leaves, and the edge is scalloped. Round brass discs carry the coordinates.
The pieces are turned in pale and dark wood and mounted in cast metal — openwork crowns on the kings and queens, turrets on the rooks, horse heads on the knights. Open the board and the backgammon field is inside, with grapes and a pomegranate inlaid in pale wood and a brass handle on each side rail.
Specifications
- Open size: 23.6 × 23.6 in (60 × 60 cm)
- Material: beech wood with an inlaid field of pale and brown squares
- Carving: Mount Ararat in relief below the field, grapes and vine leaves at the sides, rope border, scalloped edge, brass coordinate discs; grapes and a pomegranate inlaid inside
- Pieces: 32 turned wooden chess pieces in pale and dark wood, mounted in cast brass; 32 wooden backgammon checkers; pair of dice
- Folded size: 11.8 × 23.6 in (30 × 60 cm)
- Handles: cast brass carry handle on the front edge, brass handle on each side rail
- Hardware: bronze hinges and clasps
- Craftsmanship: handmade in Armenia
What's Included
- Folding carved beech board — chess outside, backgammon inside
- 32 brass-mounted wooden chess pieces, 16 pale and 16 dark
- 32 wooden backgammon checkers and a pair of dice
- Carrying bag
Why You'll Love It
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The mountain in front of you: Ararat takes the whole lower panel, snow in the pale wood — you look at the horizon all game.
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Metal where it shows: cast crowns, turrets and horse heads on turned wooden bodies, the glint of metal without the chill.
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Lifts like a case: a brass handle at the front, one on each side inside, bronze clasps to hold it shut.
Good to Know Before You Buy
Are the pieces bronze? The bodies are turned wood, pale for one side and dark for the other, and the tops are cast metal in a gold tone — openwork crowns, turret lids, horse heads — fixed to the wood. They feel heavier in the hand than plain turned pieces. The board, the mountain and the vines are carved beech.
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 heat. Dust the carving with a soft brush, wipe the field and the metal tops dry, and keep everything in the bag.
Also known as nardi (нарды), nardy, tavla or shesh besh.
