Originally posted by cheshirecatstevensNot that I have seen, but that could be a good idea for some
There was a thread that said that chess membership is growing faster in muslim nations than in other nations. this got me thinking. Do muslim chess sets have cresent kings?
But you can get crusades chess sets:
http://www.chessbaron.co.uk/chess-TH2030.htm
Originally posted by cheshirecatstevensThe queens are all wrapped up in black cloth and you can't tell the white one from the black one. When you sacrifice a piece the whole board blows up. And if you take a poison pawn the ref cuts your hand off.
There was a thread that said that chess membership is growing faster in muslim nations than in other nations. this got me thinking. Do muslim chess sets have cresent kings?
found this:
The Levantine Chess Set
The chances are that you will never have heard of this one but I include it because it is one of the few modern examples of a hand crafted chess set with unique figures and a "deeper meaning" (!). Its forces are supposed to represent in a balanced way the present day conflict between Muslims and Isrealis. Each figure dipicts a specific cultural or historical steriotype. The board too has depth, containing elements of memorial, tiled tomb and commemorative mosaic. The Muslim forces include an Iraqi tank soldier, a suicide car bomber, and an Egyptian Mummy terrorist. The western/Israeli forces on the other hand include an American tourist, a Biggles airman, and a cruicified sheep (!!). The board itself even has a series of names inscribed upon it as if to suggest a cenotaph. Although this particular set is of little value to a chess player who is used to having all his pawns the same shape it does serve as a powerful symbol of the tensions and millitary conflicts which exist in our world.
http://www.angelfire.com/nf/chess/sets.html
One thing you have to remember is that any representation of graven images or idols is expressly forbidden in the Islamic culture. That's why they went bananas over the dutch cartoons about Mohammed. So a Muslim chess set would have stylized pieces but no human faces or bodies. This is a big reason why the Staunton set is the worldwide tournament standard.
Originally posted by Suziannethat is why i brought the question up. isnt there a crorr on the staunton set? so isnt a cressent more appropraite?
One thing you have to remember is that any representation of graven images or idols is expressly forbidden in the Islamic culture. That's why they went bananas over the dutch cartoons about Mohammed. So a Muslim chess set would have stylized pieces but no human faces or bodies. This is a big reason why the Staunton set is the worldwide tournament standard.