Luxury Mount Ararat Chess and Backgammon Set with Bronze Pieces

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

Cast bronze pieces on turned wooden bases stand on this luxury chess and backgammon set, its frame carved with Mount Ararat at each end, grape bunches, vine leaves and pomegranates, and a carry handle cut through both ends — chess outside, nardi inside. 40 × 40 cm / 15.7″ × 15.7″ open, handmade in Armenia from beech.

This is the wooden chess set with a metal army. Every piece is cast in openwork bronze in a gold tone — lattice bodies, turret rooks, horse-head knights, crowned kings — on a turned, fluted wooden base, pale for one side and red-brown for the other. Under them, 40 cm of dark-stained beech with brass coordinate discs beside the squares.

The mountain is carved twice, at the top and bottom edge, with the snow in the pale wood; grapes hang down one side, pomegranates the other, and the edge is scalloped. Open it and the backgammon field is inside, a pomegranate inlaid in one half and grapes in the other.

Specifications

• Size: 40 × 40 cm / 15.7″ × 15.7″
• Material: beech wood, dark-stained, with an inlaid field of pale and brown squares
• Carving: Mount Ararat in relief at each end, grape bunches, vine leaves and pomegranates at the sides, scalloped edge, brass coordinate discs; inlaid backgammon points with a pomegranate and grapes inside
• Pieces: 32 openwork cast bronze chess pieces in a gold tone on turned wooden bases, 16 pale and 16 red-brown; 32 wooden backgammon checkers; pair of dice
• Folded: 20 × 40 cm / 7.9″ × 15.7″
• Carry handle: cut through each end, with lifting slots in the side rails
• 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
• 32 wooden backgammon checkers and a pair of dice
• Carrying bag

Why You'll Love It

• Bronze in the hand: openwork castings with real heft, a different feel from any turned piece.
• The frame says where it's from: Ararat at both ends, grapes and pomegranates between — carved in relief, not printed.
• Two games, one grip: chess on top, nardi inside, a handle cut through each end.

Good to Know Before You Buy

Are the pieces solid bronze? They are cast bronze in a gold tone with a dark antiqued finish in the recesses — the lattice bodies, turrets and horse heads are all metal — fixed to turned wooden bases, pale on one side and red-brown on the other. They have far more heft than wooden pieces. The board itself is 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 bronze dry, and keep everything in the bag.

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