Antique English Staunton Chess Set – Attributed to F. H. Ayres – c.1900–1920 – Crown-Marked Pieces – Original 1922 Chess Papers.
A particularly appealing early 20th-century English Staunton-pattern chess set, attributed on stylistic and constructional grounds to the celebrated London games manufacturer F. H. Ayres.
The complete set of 32 chessmen is finely turned and carved in natural boxwood and black ebonised wood, with weighted bases covered in green baize.
The King measures 66 mm (approximately 2⅝ inches) high with an exactly 27 mm diameter base. The remaining pieces measure: Queen 57 mm, Bishop 52 mm, Knight 41 mm, Rook 37 mm and Pawn 34 mm.
Of particular importance, the King's Knight and King's Rook of each colour carry a red crown mark. This convention originated with the famous Jaques Staunton chessmen but was also employed by F. H. Ayres. Crown-marked knights and rooks are documented on attributed and identified Ayres sets.
The individually carved knights are particularly attractive, with pronounced brows, open mouths, defined manes and expressive heads characteristic of good-quality English Staunton production.
The pieces are accompanied by their period hinged wooden storage box. Particularly unusually, preserved inside the box was a collection of contemporary newspaper chess columns and chess problems dating from 1922.
These fascinating original cuttings include printed chess positions, problems, solutions and contemporary chess commentary. Their survival with the chessmen provides an evocative record of the set's early working life and indicates that it was being actively used by a chess enthusiast by 1922.
Rather than separating them from the chessmen, all of the original 1922 chess cuttings will be included with the set.
Details: English Staunton pattern; attributed to F. H. Ayres, London; approximately c.1900–1920; complete 32-piece set; King 66 mm high with 27 mm base; Queen 57 mm; Bishop 52 mm; Knight 41 mm; Rook 37 mm; Pawn 34 mm; boxwood and ebonised wood; weighted green-baize bases; red crown marks to the King's Knight and King's Rook of both colours; period wooden storage box; original chess newspaper cuttings principally dating from 1922.
The chessmen display the attractive mellow colour and surface associated with genuine age and use. The natural boxwood has developed a rich honey colour, while the black pieces retain a deep polished finish. There are expected minor marks and signs of use consistent with an antique working chess set. The black King misses its' finial and the black Queen has minor chips to the collar. Please examine the photographs carefully for the individual condition of the pieces and box.
The set is unmarked and is therefore not offered as a definitively signed F. H. Ayres set. The attribution is based upon its English Staunton form, construction, precise dimensions, carved knights and, particularly, the red crown marks to the King's Knight and King's Rook of each colour, a feature documented on F. H. Ayres sets. Comparable examples have likewise been catalogued as “possibly by F. H. Ayres” where no maker's label survives.
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