Asia

China. The 1st set does have exceptional beautiful pieces. Especially the voluptuous lady as white Queen. I have never seen a Queen like that in Chinese sets. Unfortunately it is not a complete set, but the pieces were that nice that I could not resist to buy it. And that Queen!

China. Next you see 2 Macao bust sets which both are very well carved. The set with faded red pieces is in my opinion the better one. It is one of my favourites.

China. The other 2 ivory sets are just common antique Chinese sets. Most people are amazed at the puzzle ball chess set, but it is still very common.

China. The wooden set, as told to me early 20th century, is not that common. I have been told that it would represent the Chinese court, but I'm not convinced about that. Too much warriors!

China. The bone set at the end is a very common tourist set.

India. It starts with a so called "Jaipur" silver enamelled chess set in a very cute form. In that form it is rare. Unfortunately it is not in a very good condition. The enamel is coming loose.

India. In the course of the time I have collected 6 of those "Rajasthan" sets, which are all made for the tourist market and cannot compete with the antique ones. My dating may not be accurate, but it is as is told to me. However you cannot believe everyone. All these sets are in a presentation box, designed to show the pieces for easier sale. In the list you see 2 tiny and a big ivory one, two normal sized wooden and one bigger wooden set. There exist bigger sets as well, where the figures are full width in stead of these flat ones. In the sets listed here you see full width Kings and Queens at the larger wooden set only, but the other pieces of that set are flat as well.

India. The last set in this listing is only half a set. It was a gift and the other side was never there. Pieces are crudely carved, except for the elephants which are very nice. The elephant pieces have also a little different colour.

Indonesia. Rama is the main protagonist or hero of the Ramayana tale. Portrayed as the seventh avatar of god Vishnu and as the epitome of virtue, he is the eldest and favourite son of Dasharatha, the king of Ayodhya and his chief queen Kausalya. Dasharatha is forced by Kaikeyi, the third of his three wives, to command Rama to relinquish his right to the throne and go into exile with his wife Sita. That lasted a period of fourteen years.
Together with his half-brother Lakshmana and the army of "Varana" - originally means forest men and today means monkeys -  under leading of his friends Hanuman, Angada and prince Sugriva, he fights with the evil and powerful demon king Ravana, who abducted his wife Sita to Lanka. The Garuda saved the injured Rama and Lakshmana, after which Rama kills Ravana and returns to Ayodhya to form an ideal state.
(ca. 50.000 lines of poetry in 5 sentences!)

These are Bali sets with Ramayana theme. The King is Rama, in most sets sitting on the Garuda and the Queen is Sita. Bishop, Rook and pawns are the "Varana" (monkeys) or other mythological figures (in the last set is the Rook a Garuda). Knight could be Ravana (normally shown as man with multiple heads and arms?) The 1st set is, according Munger/III 2000, the old way to represent the Ramayana. I'm not sure if the last set is representing the Ramayana.

The quality of the carving of these sets varies greatly. The best carved sets can be very costly and you do not see those in my collection. The 1st set is hardly carved but it is expressively painted. The 2nd and 3rd set are carved quite well, which is not so common. The 4th (=1st coloured) set and the last one are carved moderately, while and the 5th (=2nd coloured) and 6th aren't carved that well. But I have seen much worse too!

These sets are made for the tourist market and, except the 1st and 2nd one, are found in huge quantities. They come often with a teak storage box annex board as shown at the second last set. Sometimes there are legs that can be turned out so that the box can be used as a chess table as well. They may have primitively made disks and dices to play backgammon and checkers. Maybe some other game too, because there are 16 disks in each colour. Or is there just one spare?

Indonesia. These sets from Irian Jaya, West New Guinea, are based on the striking art of the Asmat, a very primitive tribe, but are conceived by a Chinese-Malay entrepreneur. The style resembles a European or American caricature: "primitive" black people as seen by "civilized" Indonesian.

Japan.This older version of a "Kokeshi" doll based chess set is very scarce according Munger/III 2000. The colours and patina are very nice at this set, which is one of my favourites.

Kyrgyzstan. Maybe because Kyrgyzstan was under soviet influence in the period of 1919 till 1991 that  these sets are often indicated as Russian. The sets come in several variations, but are very recognizable by their simple abstract forms which are richly decorated with figures in traditional costumes. Note also the decoration on the board. Sometimes these boards are stamped with "made in USSR", but not this one.

Myanmar. In Myanmar chess has its own rules and initial position. I'm not sure whether all pieces move like our chess. Normal traditional pieces to play Burmese chess are figural as well, see Myanmar at "To Play With" menu. Here several other sets from Myanmar. Maybe set 2 is also meant for play.

I have to say that it is very difficult to date these sets. I suspect that some of them are aged and actually of a recent date. This is highly suspected at the 1st set (dated 1910 or older) and a bit suspected at the 2nd set (dated 1950). Although these 2 sets could have some age. The other sets are of more recent date, which is most likely accurate.

Nepal. Ned Munger, who had bought such set in London in 1951, states in his Cultures, Chess & Art, Volume 3: Pacific Islands & Asia Cultures, that the origin is Cambodia and the Queen is figured as an "Apsara", a female dancer at the royal court. However it is a rare case that Munger is incorrect. Holger Langer tells us that the set is from Nepal. The rook is in pagoda style, possibly the Cangu Narayan temple. The Bishop is in stupa style, specific Bodnath in the Kathmandu vicinity. Both are main architectural styles of Nepalese temples. The Knights are Nepalese leaping temple lions. King and Queen are also Nepalese mythologic figures. King as Garuda praying to snake god Takshaka and Queen as Nepalese Maruni dancer. Pawns are peasants kneeling in prayer. Holger Langer dates the sets between 1920-1950.

Philippines. A friend of mine went to the Philippines in 1978 and in 1980. He bought the 1st set in Baguio. Not sure who did make this set.
July 2021 a similar set was offered on Ebay as "Vintage Philippine Maria Clara Chess Set Narra & Kamagong Wood 5”K". The description said a.o.: The set is inspired by the local "folk heroine" Maria Clara from the novel of Philippine national hero, Jose Rizal (1861-1896). The heroine inspired a dance, a song and a form of national dress. The set originates from the Ivatan people of the Batanes islands, which is the northern most region of the Philippines. As with other higher quality Filipino sets, the natural hardwoods are polished and oiled. The white side is made from Acacia or Narra (Light Brown), and the black side is made from Kamagong (Dark Brown).

The 2nd set was bought in an Igorot Village on Luzon. Igorot is the umbrella name for a number of indigenous peoples in the northern Philippines, a region with a lot of rice cultivation in terraces. The chess set shows it in the rice bowl that the Bishop is holding. Furthermore, you can see the water buffalo, the farmers' best friend, as the Knight and the nipa hut, the national house type, as the Rook. This set was made by Ifugao, headhunters in the past. Now they are famous for their woodcarving skills.

The 3rd set is from same origin. Note that by mistake I did put the wrong black King on the picture. In reality it is very similar to the white King! Once I will make new pictures.

Sri Lanka. July and August, each year in Kandy, the hill capital of Sri Lanka, the "Esala Perahera" (procession), also known as The Festival of the Tooth, takes place in the streets around the "Pattirippuwa". The latter is an octagonal pavilion and one of three main structures of the "Sri Dalada Maligawa" (Temple of the Tooth) where Lord Buddha's Tooth relic is preserved. This is Sri Lanka's biggest cultural pageant and is thought to go back to the 3rd century BC as a ritual enacted to request the gods for rainfall. Modern version, existing of several rituals and breathtaking processions with dozens of elephants, fire dancers, drummers and other musicians, lasts 11 days and ends on the night of the full moon in August. It was the inspiration for this tourist chess set.

Thailand. Not necessarily made there. The Eight Immortals are a group of legendary xian ("immortals") in Chinese mythology. Each immortal's power can be transferred to a power tool that can bestow life or destroy evil. This set is a replica in resin. Note that at the dark side there is a double: see picture of pawns at no. 3 and 5, while no. 3 at the light side is OK.

Vietnam. I was told that this set was Vietnamese, and Munger/III 2000 lists a Vietnamese set with similarities. But I found another, more comparable, set in Munger/III 2000 from Taiwan, so I thought it must be Taiwan. However, February 2023, an almost equal set, but now with original lacquered board signed by "Thanh Ley, Vietnam" appeared. So the set is indeed Vietnamese. I think Munger was not correct this time.