Egyptians versus Assyrians

The pewter Egyptian chess set depicts two of the great civilisations of the ancient middle-east, that of the Egyptians whose apogee occurred in the 2nd Millennium B.C. and that of the Assyrians who rose to power in the 1st. War occurred between these two peoples in 674BC when an Assyrian assault upon Egypt occurred, in which the invaders were initially repulsed but eventually captured the important Egyptian city of Memphis.

On the Egyptian chess side the king is represented by a pharaoh of the Middle-kingdom, Ramses II and his wife. The Pharaoh had divine status and was regarded as a god amongst his people. The Egyptian chess bishops are represented by two of the most important deities in the Egyptian pantheon, Re: the sun-god and Thoth the judge of the dead. The chess knights and pawns are Egyptian cavalry and light infantry respectively, while the rook represents the lotus topped temple pillars from numerous sacred buildings of the period.

The Assyrian chess king is a depiction of Sennacherib, the eighth century king who sacked Babylon and attacked Judah, together with his queen. The bishops are represented by the Assyrian god Marduk, the lord of thunder and an important deity amongst this people.The Knight is an Assyrian mounted archer and the pawn an Assyrian light infantryman. The Assyrian chess rook is a depiction of one of the great carved winged lions which guard various Assyrian royal buildings, principally at the great palace at Nineveh and which are important symbols of royalty.

The Black and White Chess Board is included unless removed in the options below.