This appears to be a unique chess set. Anyone seen this pattern before ?

Thanks for the props xTheBlackKnight.  I struggle to do it justice, as my  camera skills could use quite a bit of work.   Any requests for what the next piece should be ?

I'm looking forward to seeing the kings and the Queens

Ok xTheBlackKnight, queens are up next. 

The heady Caramel Queen takes the stage

And the Black Queen astride

Together they make quite a pair

Gorgeous figures but serious demeanor 

She bows at her master 

And so does she

Very impressive!

Got a chance to detail out the wood grain and finish, so here they are

Outside, with simple sunlight

Lying down, catching some rays from a different angle

The sleeve on the Caramel queen's dress - this one and the pic that follows were taken with a usb microscope

And the emblem on the black queen's purse

The knights are next, followed by the kings

Looking forward to it!

The facial expression on every piece tells and is unique to that piece.

When cleaned and polished it'll be even more detailed, these detail close-ups do not do the pieces justice. 

Thanks for your post, i'll try to get the rest out this weekend.

At first I just thought it was pics from the Terracotta Army  haha

I said this before but for those who haven't seen a lot of antique sets and think this looks like the Terra Cotta Army or Lewis Chess or something here are several sets that look something like this (random pictures from the Crumiller collection and elsewhere online as well as one of mine which looks like like the set in question but I included it because it's my set):

Charlemagne set from the Crumiller Collection

An English set from the Crumiller Collection. (You see what I mean about the Bishops.)

English pieces from the Crumiller collection.

another English set.

A wooden set from Val Gardena (which someone was asking about elsewhere on chess.com)

Another one. This is Anri and comes in many sizes and without paint.

And finally one of my sets, which I don't know much about. Not full figures but there are similarities, anyway every pawn has a different face.

Again I haven't seen this set before, but my point was just nothing in it looks *so* unique... well maybe the queen with a purse is a very unique feature, lol, just not the things some others are pointing to.

Interesting comparison, I notice that even the terracota army they made the heads separately and then affixed them to the rest of the statute, which in the case of this set they did not.  Except for the base the set is sculpted out of wood rather than piecemeal assembled (which I think is easier and cheaper to do piecemeal assembly).

But maybe the terracota army thing keeps coming up because of how dusty the set is at present!

Hello tmkroll and thanks for your post and excellent pictures! Great collection.

As for this set, and with all of the responses I received here as well as through email, I think it safe to say that no one has seen this pattern before, which confirms the information that I have that places it in the original art variety.  It has neither copied any set that anyon has ever seen, nor been copied.

In looking at the sets you posted I can see that others have sculpted soldiers and their leading royalty before, and I can see they have done beautiful work as well.  But these being the most direct comparisons that can be mustered continues to affirm that the set here is not only unique, but one of a kind.  Now I don't mean by that that it is the first time someone sculpted soldiers and royalty; but that this is the first and only time this artists vision is represented.  And what a vision it is.  Detailed, but without overt flair or needless flowing lines.  Expressive, but serious - as those facing battle would be.

From what I can see, for many of the antique sets there are patterns created for which there are dozens, hundreds, sometimes thousands of sets that follow in that pattern - even if execution results in variances such as a different facial expression for example.  For many of even the fancy sets, automated tools make the process much easier as well.  Lastly I have seen the tendency to piece-meal some of the other sculptures - sort of an assembly line for chess pieces, which will have heads/weapons made here, bodies made there, and some glue to bring them together.  Not to say that some beautiful pieces cannot result from these processes, but I think it adds to the uniqueness of this set that it did not happen here.

I welcome your thoughts as I get the remainder of the pictures as well as the background of the set out on this thread.

I was just kidding, but, it did remind me of the Terracotta army, especially this pic

Someone else pointed out the terracota army and I have to admit that the look of the soldiers did strike me as similar.  Like this was not a picnic of masquerade they were headed to.

It's definitely an amazing piece of art.  Where did you get it?

I'm not saying I don't see the resemblance to the Terra Cotta Army either. I just got the wrong idea from your post and the other one and was trying to point to other sets with, for example, unique faces on each pawn, just to show that concept is hundreds of years old and not connected to the Terra Cotta. Also Chessfanla, I wasn't attempting to say your wasn't unique either, in fact I think it is unique but that's the sort of thing you can just about never be quite sure of.

Hi BigKingBud and thanks for your posts, the story of the set will be written up in this thread soon.  I just have to find the time to get the last pieces pictured and then will deliver the story outline at that point.  The story clears up a few things and should be a good read if people are interested in it.