The wood inlay work looks exactly like a small wooden box I purchased near the Alhambra palace in southern Spain over 30 years ago. My box and I am guessing the chess set were probably made for the tourist market. I still have the box and have always admired the beautiful colored wood inlay. Are you selling your set or just trying to get an idea of the value?
Don Quixote chess set from Spain.
Sort:
I am selling our set.
I did an Ebay search and couldn't find a metal Don Quixote set. There was a handcarved wooden set for a couple hundred dollars, but that doesn't help much. There were 179 metal sets listed ranging in price from under a hundred to thousands of dollars depending on craftsmanship and materials. Maybe browsing through the listings (search "metal" in the chess section) would give you a better idea of its' value. Sorry I couldn't be more help.
I am also guessing the geometric patterns are influenced by the Muslim occupation of Spain by the Moors 1000+ years ago.
Here is an Alhambra style chess set on eBay with wooden pieces for $99.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Handmade-Wood-Crafted-Large-Backgammon-and-Chess-13-7-Alhambra-Style-Game-Board-/261123931741?pt=Games_US&hash=item3ccc32fe5d
I have browsed a lot. That is why I thought of cominig here. Most of what I have seen are lacking in detail and they do not have working peices. This windmill goes around very nicely with such ease.
danixmt, thank you. The two however are not even close to compaire. Ebay really had nothing except http://www.ebay.com/itm/ANTIQUE-FIGURAL-SILVER-BRASS-METAL-CHESS-SET-32-HAND-CARVED-WOOD-BOARD-BOX-ITALY-/261126320957?_trksid=p2045573.m2042&_trkparms=aid%3D111000%26algo%3DREC.CURRENT%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D27%26meid%3D3506351864859442288%26pid%3D100033%26prg%3D1011%26rk%3D2%26sd%3D261123931741%26 is the only thing that looks even close but not this old. And, I would bet you are correct about the board. Just not sure about the peices.
I was only trying to help shed some light on the board and maybe that could help you track down more info on the pieces. Your set is fantastic and I would love to give a good home, but I think it is way out of my price range. Good luck.
danixnt, you have been a great help. Sheadding light on the board is helping some. Thank you. I don't think the set was even used, but maybe a few times. The hard part is, there are no markings on the peices that shead any light on them, nor the box or board. That is why I am sure you are right. Now, just to find a price...ugh....I do wish to find a great home for the set where it is not locked up in a box. :-)
Thank you Mithras, but no thank you. :-)
Seems no one has ever seen this set before and all seem excited that the windmill spins so nicely. However, that being said, I still have no idea what I am looking at. I wish I was able to post video. Does ANYONE out there have any ideas? 
I just had the set valued by professionals, value is WELL OVER $1600.00 - The value is in the chess pieces only, board is not worth much. Pieces are made of BRASS and SILVER PLATED. :-) Now, I need to sell it. Not sure what to sell it at, thinking 1000-900?
"Value" with something like this is only what someone who is interested in it is willing to pay. Until there's a buyer with money in hand, any estimates of value are theoretical only. You should list it on Ebay for what you think it's worth, then see what happens.
Just bought this chess set / pieces & he threw in the marble board for free :) from a little shop in turkey / feithye :) the detail on the pieces is absolutly amazing! I can reveal the makers of these uniqe chess set boards & pieces are made in greece & company name is Marinakis / www.marinakisbros.com
I have this Don Quixote chess set, in like a velvet box and they rest in foam, they fit in, and the windmills turn
Hello,
I'm a spaniard and I have seen that kind of chess several times.
It is mostly a tourist item, valuable but not really used in the country. Some people take it as collectable.
It is usual to find this kind of items in "damasquinado" shops. Damasquinado is a way to work metal introduced in Spain by arabs a lot time ago. It came from the old Damascus in current Syria. It is widely used nowadays in decorative items (mainly for tourists also). The designs in wood like the one in your photo are also called "Damasquinados" in some places here.
The set has no historic value, but in some cases they are plated in gold and silver, so they could have some value by the materials itself.
Here you can see similar works with the current price:
http://www.armaduras-arroyo.com/admin/productos/ver_producto.php?id_categoria=146
As you can see the set (plated in gold and silver) is about 300€, although you have to take in to account that the works from the page are "Damasquinados" (board is metal and not wood) and possibly more expensive.
You can usually find them in tourist shops, for example in toledo and madrid. A good artisan work, but IMHO no more than 150€ or similar in second hand.
A different thing is if you bought it in USA. Then it can cost more. For example this set (the "lord of the kisch" set):
It says it is sold by near 2000$ in USA. 700€ in ebay, and I guess about 400€- 500€ in a real shop.
I am a historian and an author. My Don Quijote chess set is one of a kind. Recently I brought it to the Antique Roadshow and they researched it and valued it at $300,000 minimum. It appears in the background of two paintings, one by El Greco, and one by Goya. It was used in the court of Alfonso XIII in the late 19th Century. He was an avid reader of Cervantes and enjoyed using the set.
After the Spanish Civil War, in the 1930's, it made it's way to the United States. My grandfather found it in a little antique ship in Spanish Harlem and I eventually inherited it.
I love the chess set and I do not really want to ever sell it, but I need the money, as most of us do.
I will sell it for $100,000. I know I will regret it later, as I did when I sold my 1974 Jaquar XKE convertible in 1989 for $40,000. I had paid $12,000 for it new, so I thought that I was getting a good deal. It later sold in the UK for $250,000. The founder of Victoria's Secret years ago sold his dying company for nada and later jumped off a bridge and killed himself for his mistake. These things happen, but I will be satisfied with the $100,000. It will pay off a lot of school loans, which are no longer dischargeable in bankruptcy, and will also help pay for college for my three sons. I have many sets in my collection, but none with any value like this one. I only use Staunton sets when I play, anyway. I have three facebook pages under Rick Levine for more information. You can contact me there.
wow ...
I suppose you are just joking. I congratulate you, because I'm still laughing.
Just curious about what Greco paint shows this chess set, as the Greco is contemporary of Cervantes and the Novel of Don Quixote was published only 9 years before the Greco's death. No much time to have a first "Don Quixote" chess set done and a painting of it by el greco...
That would mean that is the very first chess set ever made of Don Quixote, and about 400 years old.
The whole thing is a big non sense.
By the way It is impossible that the set goes to USA in 1930 after the civil war, as the civil war started in 1936.
Don't worry I need some paperweights, so I offer you 5$ by the whole set.
good joke
http://www.chess.com/photos/view_album/entkitty/chess-set