The French Regency Set: A Mystery Revealed

I have left a few hints in various threads that I might have purchased a new set.

Maybe it was to celebrate the end of lockdown; no...  that's just an excuse. 

Maybe it is because my stepdad is French; no... that's just an excuse. 

Maybe it is was to take advantage of Black Friday discounts - that's definitely an excuse! I pulled this trigger before those sales started - it was already on deep discount.

Whatever... I .... purchased another set and the mystery is no more. 

I am going to blame @Walterbiensur for a very cryptic post he made #111 in his Chavet No.8 Thread.   Something about chess piece genealogy and I noticed a photo of a set in that post of the French Regency  style.  

I had previously admired such antique sets on Holger Langer's chess site and also the Chess Museum site.... and I had alway liked the design; albeit it's at the edge of functional. The pieces don't follow current convention and in some ways, they are quite confusing ... as much as I like them, others may not. No drama if that is the case.

They are certainly different... but my gosh, do I find them beautiful. I also understand that others will find them jarring or perhaps even ugly. All cool - each to their own. 

Also please understand that: 

• It is not an antique (and I don't pretend it is) - at best, it is inspired by a style of yesteryear. 
• I did not buy it as an investment - rather - I simply like it, I thought it was fair value and I am curating a range of sets of different styles.
• I will use it for display, learning and the odd, slow game over a beer with my brother.

I will post more photos - I am quite busy at work - but these should work to start. I think they may look even better on a different board.

Once again - I found the team at Chess Bazaar friendly, responsive and efficient. I ordered the set around 2.5 weeks ago - it would have arrived quicker but it got stuck in Singapore and Sydney. I wasn't fussed - international shipping is a challenge at present and FedEx kept updating my via their app. 

The pieces are better than I expected. Beautifully crafted. The colour and grain in the wood is wonderful; I was taking these photos at dusk the dark pieces seemed positively luminescent in the fading light. These pieces are not gloss - this is a buffed finished.

I'll post sizes and weights when I get a chance.

Anyway - something a bit left field....  

Whoa! Powderdigit, Is this all your Pieces? They look Stylish and Classical. Where did you buy this from?

 

Lovely set @Powderdigit. 

The "black" pieces are stunning, hard to believe they are the buff finish. 

Best reason of all to buy a set - because you like it. 

Congrats on the new acquisition, enjoy!

You go girl mister Powder! Congratz! I'd never have guessed it no, The wood is niceee, padauk?

Very interesting Powder! I am not a collector and can only give my humble yet enthusiastic “Awesome” to your new purchase. Yes, it’s a bit outside the normal that i see but that is what makes it appealing to my eyes. Do some of the taller pieces feel top heavy, I wonder? No matter, stunning is a good description. Kudos to you for whetting our appetites with the anticipation and i echo @Rsava - the best reason to buy it is because you like it! Enjoy the game with your brother, and of course the beer too! Thank you again for another post with pictures of sets most of us will never get to see. Well done!

The set looks very well done. No indication whatsoever that its execution is less than "flawless." Congratulations.

Congratulations @Powderdigit, a very beautiful set. The grain of the padauk is fantastic. I'm glad if my website has served as an inspiration. Mission accomplished!

I'd be lying if I did not say that set is really nice,but you'd be lying saying you bought it for any other reason than "sheer desire"!

Plain and simple.-

In my lunch break from work - a few more shots. First some of the mechanics. Here are the weights of some of the major pieces. For their height - they are surprisingly well balanced. 

I have also tried to illustrate the tipping point - these photos show the pieces still pushing upright due to the weights in the base … much further down and they fall. Again, I think they are quite stable given the slender nature of the pieces. 
It’s not the most scientific approach/review but I hope it helps!

And some more shots on a different board. It is truly a lovely set. 

Very interesting 818 - I like the detail in the face of the knights of your photo.

There a couple of things I would like to see … To take the set a notch or two higher.

One - if the knights were slightly more ornate/intricate in their carving - that said, the simplicity here is appealing.

Two - the bishops could be taller and perhaps have something on the top that better differentiated the from the queens and the pawn.

I have seen some historical French Regency sets with the factors mentioned and that would help differentiate the pieces and as I say elevate a great set further.

I will say - much like my Squadron set - the pawns in this set are exquisite.

Again - so happy that I stepped into this left-field space. Nice to have a different set.

Love upright sets awesome craftsmanship and lovely wood.
Congratulations Powderdigits

Lovely set! I would have overlooked this style otherwise. Great pic too. On the later photos, what size is your board with the b/w squares and brown border?

Thanks @Greenmiller - I appreciate the feedback. The board is quite large.

The whole board is 58.4cm * 58.4cm and each square is 6cm.

Hi All,

Reading in another thread about concerns with scratches etc on the FIDE WCC set - I get a bit paranoid because I want to ensure I don’t mislead or perhaps my expectations are not at the level of others. So I closely inspected my pieces again - to really ‘look’ for imperfections.

I suppose at my harshest I can see the rotation of the lathe and perhaps a scratch across the grain of a piece. Also there’s a slight dent in the knight. And, yes, there are subtle changes in colour across the pieces.

All of which is to say - these are not flaws that I would call out on these pieces nor would I raise/discuss with the vendor…. But again, I might have lower expectations and of course the price point is perhaps lower than other sets too. 

Of course, it’s all subjective but I just wanted to post these additional photos so people could see.

 

 

In all seriousness it is really a gorgeous set......Very impressive.

I like the fact that you are putting together a nice collection of different types of sets.The future should be interesting "down under".

Yo Powder, you’re new set as well as your character are beyond reproach. Appreciate the up-close photos, makes me love the set even more.

Yeah @MCH818 noted. If this was a scratch or some kind of exposure to raw wood - I would absolutely raise it - mainly because it would be an eyesore or at least distract me. The slight dent on the other hand will probably occur more as I play with the set anyway and thus - not bothersome for me as it looks more akin to normal wear.

Beautiful set @Powderdigit, you've got quite a few flavours going on in your collection now but like they say variety is the spice of life. Thanks for sharing, it's always good to see something different.

Thanks @Tank1366! It is a diverse collection that I am building. There’s something about being able to rotate sets in and out of play and display… again, I realise these sets are not an investment in terms of monetary appreciation but they are an investment of sorts … just in the joy they bring aesthetically and to play.