Chess is the most cosmopolitan and possibly the most ancient of games. Yet, from its origins in India to the present day, it has always proved to be much more than a pastime. Besides the inspiration the game has given to writers and artists throughout the world, chess sets reflect, through the work of craftsmen, changing styles in art, topical controversies, battles, propaganda and mythology. In short, beyond its practical use, every chess set represents both an historical record and a work of art.\nChess sets have always offered the craftsman an opportunity to display the qualit of his work on a small scale - whether in traditional or unusual materials. But it is an area of antiques that has been comparatively neglected. Both the would-be collector and the new collector has too often been deterred from beginning, or extending, his collection through the lack of reliable information. As a result, prices have laggged far behind the cost of similar types of antiques. While the book describes many early and rare sets, the main emphasis, therefore, falls on the last two centuries, from which period desirable examples can be obtained by the discerning collector for a relatively modest sum.\nCountry by country each chapter systematically charts the development of chess sets in chronological order, giving the collector an instant means of identification. The accompanying 50 colour and 270 black and white illustration give details of the diverse materials used - ivory, wood, porcelain, bronze - precise heights of pawns and pieces, their provenance and date. The text and illustrations together highlight the variation of style in English sets, Indian ivory sets, Spanish 'pulpit' chessmen and delicate French eighteenth-century sets, as well as unique works of art from all over the world. The whole amounts to a highly authoritative, wide-ranging reference work for the serious or casual chess collector who may benefit from a profitable investment as well as enjoy pleasure of owning and looking at beautiful works of art.