Dal Rossi Italy Chess Set 16" with 85mm Boxwood & Sheesham Double-Weighted Pieces

The point at which a chess set stops being a game and becomes a piece of furniture.

A 16 inch walnut board paired with 85mm pieces turned from Boxwood and Sheesham. The pieces are the reason for the price: double-weighted, which means a metal weight set into the base under the felt, so a knight has genuine heft and stands where you put it. Anyone who has only played with hollow plastic pieces notices it within about four moves.

85mm is tournament scale — a king that stands nearly nine centimetres, sized so the base sits properly within a 16 inch board's squares without crowding its neighbours. Boxwood and Sheesham give a natural cream-and-rosewood contrast rather than painted black and white, and both woods darken slightly with handling over the years, which is part of why sets like this get kept.

Perfect for: A serious player, a significant birthday, or the set you buy once and don't replace.

2 players | 16" walnut board | 85mm Boxwood and Sheesham pieces, double-weighted