Inspired by the natural world, “Animal, Vegetable, Mineral: Natural Splendors from the Chess Collection of Dr. George & Vivian Dean” showcases 37 full chess sets and 1 partial set from the Dean Collection along with examples of minerals from which they were created, organic specimens upon which they were modeled, and the styles of tools used to make them. This exhibition commemorates the 55th year that Dr. George and Vivian Dean have collected chess sets together. They purchased their first chess set in the Middle East and thereafter acquired a set in each country they visited. As they immersed themselves in chess history and joined a worldwide community of chess set connoisseurs, they expanded their collection more systematically. Now they travel to new countries for the sole purpose of acquiring new sets to make the collection more comprehensive. Their collection includes over 1,000 chess sets and related objects from over 100 countries. Dr. Dean is a physician as was Carl Linnaeus, the noted Swedish scientist who, in his 1735 book “Systema Naturae”, proposed the first comprehensive system of organizing the entire natural world into Animal, Vegetable, and Mineral kingdoms. Hence, works for this exhibition have been selected on the basis of being exceptional examples of animal, vegetable, or mineral subjects or materials.

Insects Chess Set and Board, c 1790
Perhaps inspired by Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus’ 1737 book Systema Naturae, which classified all of the natural world according to genus and species, Italian carvers crafted this chess set depicting butterflies playing against moths. Each piece represents a specific species of insect in either a larval or adult stage. The moths, which are active at night, are in black, while butterflies are on the white side.

Old World Swallowtail [Papilio machaon]
Each of the pieces on the back rank of the set represents a specific species of insect in either a larval or adult stage. Most species are identified by Latin inscriptions on their bases. The white Queen is represented as an Old World Swallowtail [Papilio machaon] and the white King is represented as a Chinese Scarce Swallowtail [Iphiclides podalirius].

Elephant Ivory [Loxodonta africana]
Ivory and ebony were chosen as the material of this Italian set because of their durability and their ability to hold fine detail. With specimens or accurate drawings to guide them, the artists used an assortment of hand tools to carve the forms and incise pattern details onto wings and bodies.

Manchu Dynasty Style Chinese Puzzleball Set, 1800s
Artisans in 19th-century Canton, China, perfected the technique of creating ivory ball-in-ball, or puzzle-ball, bases for the fine chess sets they produced for export by the British East India Trading Company. Each base has hollow, loose, lace-thin, concentric spheres lathe-turned and carved inside each other from one solid ivory ball.

Rich floral and figural sculpted designs cover the outermost surface of the balls, echoing the complex, hand-carved detailing on the Manchu Dynasty clothing of the chess figures.

Puzzle Ball Turning Tools
Success in producing these puzzle-balls was dependent upon taking the time to craft a special set of metal lathe-turning chisels, measuring and cutting accurately, and maintaining patience and focus throughout a long, tedious process.

Silver Gilt Enamel Chess Set and Board, 1900s
This chess set and board is a tour-de-force of silver smithing, relief casting, decorative engraving, and cloisonné enameling. Here, Kings and Queens wear ruby red enameled capes. One set of courtiers is cloaked in royal lapis lazuli blue, while others sport brilliant cerulean garments with white accents.

In cloisonné enameling, the contour edges of each metal surface to be colored is outlined with wire, which holds in place powdered enamel (in paste form) while the piece is heated in a kiln, or oven. The heat fuses the enamel paste to the metal surface as a glassy, jewel-like layer.

Amethyst
Pieces and board alike are edged with delicate filigree details and lavishly encrusted with over one hundred natural pearls and amethyst cabochons — raw gemstones polished to smoothly rounded, un-faceted forms.

Sea Shell with Pearls
Among the most exotic of materials formed in nature and used in chess sets are pearls—concretions of aragonite and calcite hosted by living animals—oysters.

Sea Life Chess Set and Board, c 1925
Having successfully funded the discovery of a European formula for hard paste porcelain, King Augustus II of Poland set up the Meissen workshop in 1708 to produce ceramics for himself, including hundreds of clay animals modeled from the live beasts he kept in his numerous private zoos.

Catherine the Great Chess Set, late 1700s
Empress Catherine the Great of Russia (1729-1796) was an avid chess player. She had an amber carving workshop of German craftsmen in St. Petersburg and her own royal amber mines in Kaliningrad, Russia. Kaliningrad is still today the world’s largest single source of amber. Her love of amber from the lightest yellow tints to the darkest shades of wine reds nay have created a resurgence of its popularity across Eurasia in the 1800s, especially raising the level of the carving craft in Poland and the rest of the Baltic region.

Amber with Preserved Insects
Amber, which is fossilized resin from ancient species of pine trees, has been used for decorative objects since Neolithic times. As a translucent fossil material, amber has preserved small animals or plants from as long ago as 230 million years.

Fabergé Kuropatkin Chess Set, Board and Case, 1905
One of only two chess sets ever made by Fabergé, this ensemble was commissioned by the Russian royal family for General Alexi Nikolayevich Kuropatkin to commemorate his faithful service. The silver base of the board is decorated with flawlessly sculpted acanthus and laurel leaf patterns and engraved in tribute to the general with the names of twelve or more royals, officers, and other major state figures.

Hawking Kings Chess Set on Fruitwood Chessboard, 1800s
The many species of wood in Europe’s forests encouraged artisans to develop the sophisticated carving techniques. Hunting with hawks and falcons was popular among the nobility of Europe and Asia and became another worthy subject for both chess sets and careful zoological study.

Gilt Silver, Lapis, and Malachite Chessboard, 1815
The Gilt Silver Lapis Malachite Chessboard uses the intense natural colors and patterns of rich blue lapis lazuli and brilliantly banded green malachite to create the decorative design of the board.

Malachite
Most likely, the board’s malachite came from the Ural Mountains of Russia, and its lapis lazuli from Italy or Afghanistan.

Lapis Lazuli
These two types of stone were popular among jewelers and furniture designers as well as being prized by artists as finely ground permanent pigments for use in paintings.

Rock Crystal Chess Set and Board, 1525
The rarity of flawless quartz large enough to carve into chess pieces made is highly sought after. This 16th-century Rock Crystal Set and Board is the only complete set of its kind and era. The crystal “bodies” are mounted in silver and gilt bases and topped with hand-wrought crowns, horses’ heads, and caps of the same materials. The board is made from alternating clear and smoky quartz squares underlaid with silver and gold foil. The base has gilt silver moldings separated by a band of elaborately chased silver decorations. Each corner is supported by a gilt tortoise, a symbol of slow, but determined warfare.

Animal, Vegetable, Mineral: Natural Splendors form the Chess Collection of Dr. George & Vivian Dean is part of an exhibition program celebrating the fifth anniversary of the World Chess Hall of Fame (WCHOF) in Saint Louis, and commemorates the Deans’ 55th year of collecting fine chess sets. Through its display of beautiful antique chess sets, Animal, Vegetable, Mineral: Natural Splendors from the Chess Collection of Dr. George Vivian Dean upholds the World Chess Hall of Fame’s mission to explore connections between chess and art.