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You won't find a finer antique reproduction
chess set anywhere!
Please note the exquisite attention to detail
that was paid in the crafting of this masterpiece.
This image shows the King from an original
Calvert 1810 Ivory Chess set in pristine condition,
worth over $5,000, next to the King
from our reproduction.
Can you tell which is the original
and which is the reproduction?
(Answer: The King on
the Left is the reproduction!) |
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This elaborate early 1800s English Playing Chess Set
design, referred to in the literature as a Calvert Pattern,
is derived from earlier German designs from the
15th through the 19th centuries. It is often, but wrongly, attributed
to John Calvert, a Master
of the Worshipful Company of Turners, located at 189 Fleet Street, from
around 1790 to 1840. He specialized in exquisitely turned Chess sets in
ivory for the aristocracy and in ebony/boxwood for the many coffee shops
and clubs where Chess was a popular pastime.
Chessmen of this type were actually
manufactured throughout the early-to-mid Victorian
period by John Jaques of
London and Thomas Lund
of Cornhill. The Calvert playing sets
were ultimately supplanted by the Staunton pattern chessmen, which were
introduced to the public in the fall of 1849 by the firm of John Jaques of London.
This reproduction is an exact copy,
crafted from faux ivory, of an original Calvert Chess
set. It dates from around 1810, at which time white and red colored ivory pieces
were popular. The slender baluster stems and the unusual form of the King and
Queen with their pierced floral crowns, makes an attractive and highly
decorative design.
The King stands around 3-1/2" tall.
The display Chess board box feature two drawers with individual compartments for
piece storage.
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