Chess Board Games

No one knows how the game of Chess began. It is not clear whether one person invented it, or whether several different board games gradually merged into one. Indoor board games have been played for millenniums, but the game Chaturanga, linked to modern-day Chess can be traced back to seventh-century India. Its roots probably go back further. The game may even have emerged from a religious ceremony held in order to divine the balance between good and evil. Since it's so hard to draw exact conclusions from such sparse evidence, we may never know for sure where Chess really originated. Regardless of where it originated, chess is the most enjoyable board game that gentlemen can play. The use of strategy to make and plan moves is loved by many.

From India, Chess spread quickly to Persia (present-day Iran), and after the Arabian conquest, it reached the Arab world. Chaturanga now renamed Shatranj, thrived in the "Golden Age of Islam" between the eight and the eleventh century. The Arabs were great mathematicians, and the numerical nature of Chess complemented their scientific interests. Chess arrived in Europe by a variety of different trade routes and by the early invasions of Spain and Sicily. The Vikings took Chess farther westward, and by the beginning of the eleventh century, Chess was already well known across Europe.

In a short span of time, Chess became the most popular board game in Europe. A very interesting set of chess pieces called the Isle Lewis chess set was found at Nig, in the Isle of Lewis, Scotland. The Isle Lewis chess set dates back to about the twelfth century. The Isle Lewis chess set forms the oldest surviving complete Chess set. The Isle Lewis chess set pieces are usually carved from walrus ivory and depict characters in a variety of bad moods, from rage to gloom. The backs are carved with elaborate interlacing designs like those on the reverse of the old Tarot cards. The Queens rest their cheeks on their right hands, the Kings have swords laid across their laps, while the Bishops are mitered and are seated. The contemporary Isle Lewis chess set is a collection of all chess pieces you need to play a game of Chess.

Many a debate has been settled with the playing of the game. Chess uses advanced strategies in order to plan your moves ahead of time. Without this planning, it is easy to loose a game of chess rather quickly.

http://homepage.eircom.net/~reidr1/index.html

http://www.banaschak.net/pdf/thechessofchina.pdf

When I lived in the Republic of China, the Chinese taught me how to play "syang chi" -- Chinese Chess. What an amazing game! 5,000 years old and still the best game around! Especially the short board version.

The Chinese actually have two versions, the long board, which is like our Chess, and the short board which is my favorite since a game can be played in 10 to 15 minutes.

This link explains the origins, the pieces and strategy.

To share this game with Americans, I used a label gun and ranked the pieces, and put each number ranking so that people can tell by the number.
(i.e, 1=king killer,
2J=the jumper,
3= horse,
4=chariot,
5=elephant,
6=warrior,
K=king).

I have other sets of the game that don't have the numbers on them which a lot of people enjoy playing.

If you find any great syanchi sites--or that better fit your needs, please email me at:
hunter621@yahoo.com

I have taught this game to dozens of people and they love it! I am a counselor and many of the teens had counseling--but I can teach them ancient game that no one else can comprehend and not only do the teens learn it quickly they accept me as a counselor!!

A "superhero" themed chess set designed using Solidworks for a CAD class.

Duration : 0:2:45

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