Lot #1004. Jaques Early Lessing Staunton Chessmen, Tournament Size

Description Jaques Early Lessing Chessmen Tournament Size. A set of Jaques Early Lessing Chessmen, Tournament size, Boxwood and Ebony. “Jaques London” is inscribed on the base of both Kings. The King’s crown mark is imprinted on the summits of the Kingside Rooks and Knights. The set is heavily weighted. The pieces sit atop green English baize base pads. The King stands 3-1/2″ tall with a 1-5/8″ diameter base. In the post-1899 advertisements, this size set was referred to as the “Tournament Size”. The chess pieces are in excellent condition. This is a a very robust playing set. After the company incorporated in 1899, the sizes changed somewhat. Aside from the Library size pieces and the tournament size offered here, the, the Small Club Size now sets had a 3-7/8″ King with 1-7/8″ with a 1-7/8″ diameter base. The pre-1899 Small Club-size sets had 4-0″ Kings with 1-7/8″ diameter bases. The post-1899 full Club sets now had a 4-1/4″ King with a 2″ diameter base.   The chessmen are housed in a contemporary box with a semi-mortise lock set. The box is divided and lined in green English baize and has a facsimile of the original green Jaques label affixed to the underside of the lid. The Jaques Lessing Chessmen and Mahogany storage box are in excellent condition. A picture of a similar set is shown in The World of Chess by Anthony Saidy and Norman Lessing. This design dates to around 1935. This set of antique Jaques chessmen plays and displays best on a chessboard with 2-1/4″ squares. There is no chessboard included in this sale, but suitable boards are available elsewhere on this site. For our complete inventory of antique and modern chessboards, check here. For a brief look at the Jaques Company story click here. If you are looking for more information on the Staunton Chessmen, check here. Some tips on collecting Staunton chessmen can be found here.