Five Extraordinary Chess Sets: From Czar Alexander II to Bauhaus

Key facts

• The most expensive chess set sold at auction belonged to Czar Alexander II of Russia and sold for approximately $2.6 million at Christie's London.
• The 1867 set was made of English silver, electroplated silver-gilt, ebony, ivory, and vibrant enamel.
• A chess set designed by Man Ray sold for over $200,000 at Sotheby's against an estimate of $60,000–$80,000.
• The Lewis Chessmen were unearthed in 1831 in the Outer Hebrides and are in the British Museum's collection.
• The Lewis Chessmen may have been carved in Norway around 1150 and have appeared in over 20 museum exhibitions.
• A replica of the Lewis Chessmen was used in the Harry Potter films.
• Chanel's Coco Game Capsule Collection was a highlight of Watches and Wonders 2026.
• The Chanel chess set features Gabrielle Coco Chanel as the diamond pavé queen, with pieces convertible into jewelry.
• The Nishapur Chess Set at The Metropolitan Museum of Art consists of 12th-century pieces from a Sasanian workshop.
• The Saint Louis Chessboard at the Louvre belonged to Gabrielle d'Estrées, mistress of Henri IV, and entered the Louvre's collection in 1946.
• Josef Hartwig's Bauhaus Chess Set has the knight shaped like the letter 'L' to mirror its move.
• Versions of the Bauhaus chess set are in the Met and MoMA, and reproductions can be purchased.