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Chessmen (32)

second half 18th century
Not on view
The king, queen, knight, and bishop are busts with almost no shoulders, fixed at the closed base of a circular gallery that extends halfway up their height. The gallery is finished with a row of upright leaves. The rook is a higher gallery narrowing toward the top, ending with a ring of four crenelations and topped by a small central knob. The pawns are half-figures, again with almost no shoulders, fixed to a baluster on a short stand. This type of chessman, with encircling galleries of vertical leaves, has been popular in Spain. The galleries in the simpler sets enclose symbols, miters and conventional substitutions for crowns, rather than busts.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Chessmen (32)
  • Date: second half 18th century
  • Culture: Portuguese
  • Medium: Bone
  • Dimensions: Height (each king): 3 3/8 in. (8.6 cm);
    Height (each pawn): 2 1/4 in. (5.7 cm)
  • Classification: Chess Sets
  • Credit Line: Gift of Gustavus A. Pfeiffer, 1948
  • Object Number: 48.174.137a–p, aa–pp
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

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