Chess pieces – 3 1/4″ Original Staunton Design

Carved from fine natural and ebonised boxwood by Jaques of London’s master craftsmen, this 3.25″ original Staunton design chess pieces is lovingly presented in a finely crafted wooden box with a sliding lid.

Jaques of London has been instrumental in the development and success of modern chess. Chess pieces before the mid 19th century were of two kinds – excessively elaborate and costly hand-carved reproductions of the Kings court, or rudely turned and daubed pieces in which rank was dictated by height alone. In the 1840s, this all changed. Nathaniel Cooke, proprietor of the Illustrated London News, brought John Jaques a new and elegant design for chessmen. Between the two of them, this initial design was polished to produce a set using symbols (for the king, a crown, for the bishop, a mitre) which could be easily recognised and reproduced. This radical design received rave reviews in the press, particularly for the exquisite design of the Knight, based on sculptures from the famous Elgin Marbles.

Mr Howard Staunton, the first British chess World Champion, was so taken with the design that he agreed to have his name and signature adorn every box of wooden chess set pieces. The Staunton chess pieces, as it became known, is now the de facto standard for play at all levels. Few companies can say they influenced the development of a game the way Jaques of London has shaped the world’s favourite board game, chess. Carved from fine, ebonised boxwood by Jaques of London’s master craftsmen, this 3.25″ original Staunton design chess pieces is lovingly presented in the sliding-lid style of box Jaques pioneered in 1855.

Wooden Box: 15.5cm x 13cm x 8.5cm
King: Base Diameter 36mm
Rook: Base Diameter 32mm
Pawn: Base Diameter 26mm