POSSIBLY BENGAL, SECOND HALF 19TH CENTURY

Details

AN INDIAN CARVED IVORY FIGURAL CHESS SET
POSSIBLY BENGAL, SECOND HALF 19TH CENTURY
The kings and queens as elephants, the bishops as lions passant, the knights as horsemen, the rooks as sphinxes, the pawns as footmen wearing bowler hats
The king -- 2¼in. (5.7cm.) high; the pawn -- 3in. (7.5cm.) high

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Lot Essay

A similar Indian set modelled with lions bearing flags was sold Phillips, London, 15 May 2001, lot 142.
See Michael Mark Chessmen Practical and Ornamental, Asprey and Chess Collectors International, 1986, who remarks that the quality of carving declined in the ivory workshops of Bengal, such as those found in Murshidabad and Berhampur. This is probably related to the diminishing British presence, as Berhampur ceased to be a garrison town in 1870.

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