Chess Piece Size Selection - PurchasingTips
These purchasing tips use practical ideas for selecting and purchasing chess pieces. There are many sizes of chessmen and they are generally classified by the size of the King because it is traditionally the largest piece, due to its primary importance. The popularity of chess is the main reason there is so many differing sizes in chess pieces. There are also different purposes for the sizes of the chessmen.
The most common King piece sizes are 3 ½ and 4 inches tall and are classified as small and large. This is good to know in order to size the chess piece with the chess board. Of course, all the other chessmen are smaller than the King and are standardized as to function. The Queen will be the second tallest, the Bishop and Castle the third size down with the Knight following after. The pawn are the smallest in size.
There are Kings that are 6 inches high. These are not the largest, but will require a larger board to play the game. They are not used for competition, but for fun and display. The chessmen included are smaller than the King piece, but still larger than the more common one.
The individual chess figurines measure 12 inches and have a variety of uses including show pieces, décor, book ends and paper weights. These are very ornate and decorative. Some figurines can be large enough for a garden ornament, or a home ornament.
The garden chess sets are the largest size of the chess pieces. They can be manufactured as large as life size and come in many different compositions from plastic and not weighted to weighted chess pieces. They can be made of any material possible including cement, rock and stone, ceramic and a host of other materials. Many of them are considered lawn games.
A travel chess set or miniature set may have a 2 inch or 3 inch King. Of course the chessmen are smaller and the chess board is small. They usually come in a case or a box and may or may not be magnetic. They make great travel companions.
For chess tournaments the regulation size is 3 ¾ inch King. The board is 20 inches and the squares are 2 ¼ inches. Federal regulations standardize these chess sets so that the competition is fair. It prevents discrepancies and error in competition chess games.
In conclusion, the more you know what is available, the better choice you will make. There are so many choices and uses for chess sets, pieces and boards that it is realistic to eventually have many chess sets. In older times, chess sets were a very visible and seriously played game for entertainment, for competition, and in ancient times were used to play battle strategy.
Debra has written several Chess related articles and can be found on Ezine Articles, MarbleChessBoard's Blog and Squidoo. She has a variety of interests and enjoys learning more about Chess and sharing Chess Home Decor and Critical Thinking articles and blogs. She uses her RN experience as well as a myriad of life experiences including home schooling her own children as resources for her writings. She has a BS degree in Nursing and loves learning.
