A polished bone “Selenus Pattern” chess set, German, late 18th century, one side stained brown, the other side light red, kings and queens with galleries, bishops with baluster knops and urn finials, knights as horses’ heads, rooks as slender turrets, pawns with baluster knops, the king 9cm high, the pawn 3.9cm high, in an 18th century German inlaid wooden board/box for chess and backgammon, the interior with an inlaid star motif in ebony (with replaced lock, key and later fitted wooden lift-out tray lined in velveteen plush), 47.5cm wide (when fully opened flat), 23.5cm wide (when closed).
