Chess set

For other uses, see Chess piece (disambiguation).

Original Staunton chess pieces, left to right: pawn, rook, knight, bishop, queen, and king

**Chess pieces**
	King
	Queen
	Rook
	Bishop
	Knight
	Pawn

Chess pieces, or chessmen, are the pieces deployed on a chessboard to play the game of chess. The pieces vary in how they move on the board, giving them different values in the game. For a standard chess game each player starts with:

1 king
1 queen
2 rooks
2 bishops
2 knights
8 pawns

One player is referred to as "White" and the other as "Black" (White and Black in chess). To distinguish between the two, the black pieces are darker than the white pieces. Their colors need not be black and white, but will each normally be a uniform color. The Staunton chess set is the standard style for tournament or casual play. There are many chess variants and certain kinds of chess problems that call for non-standard fairy pieces, although these are not popular and the vast majority of games are played with a standard chess set.

Terminology [edit]

In chess, the word "piece" has three meanings, depending on the context.

It may mean any of the physical pieces of the set, including the pawns. When used this way, "piece" is synonymous with "chessman" (Hooper & Whyld 1992:307) or simply "man" (Hooper & Whyld 1987:200).
In play, the term is usually used to exclude pawns, referring only to a queen, rook, bishop, knight, or king. In this context, the pieces can be broken down into three groups: major pieces (queen and rook), minor pieces (bishop and knight), and the king (Brace 1977:220).
In contexts such as the phrases "winning a piece", "losing a piece" or "sacrificing a piece", it refers only to a bishop or a knight. The queen, rook, and pawn are specified by name in these cases, for example, "winning a queen", "losing a rook", or "sacrificing a pawn" (Just & Burg 2003:5).

The context should make the intended meaning clear (Burgess 2009:523) (Hooper & Whyld 1992:307).

Movement of the pieces [edit]

Main article: Rules of chess

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

Chess starting position. Squares are referenced using algebraic notation.

Each piece moves in a different way.

The rook moves any number of vacant squares forwards, backwards, left, or right. It is also involved in a special move called castling, along with the king.
The bishop moves any number of vacant squares diagonally. Consequently, a bishop stays on squares of the same color throughout a game. The two bishops each player starts with move on squares of opposite colors.
The queen moves any number of vacant squares in any direction forwards, backwards, left, right, or diagonally.
The king moves only one vacant square in any direction forwards, backwards, left, right, or diagonally. It can also castle in conjunction with a rook.
The knight moves on an extended diagonal from one corner of any 2×3 rectangle of squares to the furthest opposite corner. Consequently, the knight alternates the color of its square every time it moves. The knight is the only piece that jumps over any intervening piece(s) when moving in normal play (castling being the only special instance in which pieces jump over one another).
The pawn can only move forward one space or, optionally, two spaces when on its starting square, away from the player. When there is an enemy piece one square diagonally ahead from the pawn, either left or right, then the pawn may capture that piece. A pawn can perform a special type of capture of an enemy pawn called en passant. If the pawn reaches a back rank of the opposite player, it undergoes promotion to the player's choice of a rook, bishop, queen, or knight (Just & Burg 2003:13–16).

Pieces other than the pawn capture in the same way that they move. A capturing piece replaces the opposing piece on its square, except for an en passant capture. A captured piece is removed from the board. Only one piece may occupy a given square. Except for castling and the knight's move, a piece may not jump over another piece (Just & Burg 2003:13–16).

Chess sets [edit]

A St. George style set

Table sets [edit]

The variety of designs available is broad, from small cosmetic changes to highly abstract representations, to themed designs such as those that emulate the drawings from the works of Lewis Carroll, or modern treatments such as Star Trek or The Simpsons. Themed designs are generally intended for display purposes rather than actual play (Hooper & Whyld 1992:76). Some works of art are designs of chess sets, such as the modernist chess set by chess enthusiast and dadaist Man Ray, that is on display in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

Chess pieces used for play are usually figurines that are taller than they are wide. For example, a set of pieces designed for a chessboard with 2.25 inches (57 mm) squares typically have a king around 3.75 inches (95 mm) tall. Chess sets are available in a variety of designs, with the most well-known Staunton design, named after Howard Staunton, a 19th-century English chess player, and designed by Nathaniel Cook. The first Staunton style sets were made in 1849 by Jaques of London (also known as John Jaques of London and Jaques and Son of London) (Just & Burg 2003:225).

Staunton pieces made of rosewood

Wooden White chess pieces are normally made of a light wood, boxwood, or sometimes maple. Black wooden pieces are made of a dark wood such as rosewood, ebony, red sandalwood, or walnut. Sometimes they are made of boxwood and stained or painted black, brown, or red. Plastic white pieces are made of white or off-white plastic, and plastic black pieces are made of black or red plastic. Sometimes other materials are used, such as bone, ivory, or a composite material (Just & Burg 2003:224,226).

Staunton chess pieces on chess board with chess clock

For actual play, pieces of the Staunton chess set design are standard. The height of the king should be between 3.35 to 4.13 inches (85 to 105 millimetres). United States Chess Federation rules call for a king height between 3.375 and 4.5 inches (86 to 114 mm). A height of about 3.75 to 4 inches (95 to 100 millimetres) is preferred by most players. The diameter of the king should be 40–50% of its height. The size of the other pieces should be in proportion to the king. The pieces should be well balanced. The length of the sides of the squares of the chessboard should be about 1.25–1.3 times the diameter of the base of the king, or 2 to 2.5 inches (51 to 64 millimetres). Squares of about 2.25 inches (57 mm) are normally well suited for pieces with the kings in the preferred size range. These criteria are from the United States Chess Federation's Official Rules of Chess, which is based on the Fédération Internationale des Échecs rules (Just & Burg 2003:224–27).

The Grandmaster Larry Evans offered this advice on buying a set (Evans 1973:18):

Make sure the one you buy is easy on the eye, felt-based, and heavy (weighted). The men should be constructed so they don't come apart. ... The regulation board used by the U. S. Chess Federation is green and buff-never red and black. However, there are several good inlaid wood boards on the market. ... Avoid cheap equipment. Chess offers a lifetime of enjoyment for just a few dollars well spent at the outset.

Pocket and travel sets [edit]

Some small magnetic sets, designed to be compact and/or for travel, have pieces more like those used in shogi and xiangqi – each piece being a similar flat token, with a symbol printed on it to identify the piece type.

Computer images [edit]

On computers, chess pieces are often 2-D symbols on a 2-D board, although some programs have 3-D graphics engines with more traditional designs of chess pieces.

Unicode contains symbols for chess pieces in both white and black.

Relative value [edit]

Main article: Chess piece relative value

The value assigned to a piece attempts to represent the potential strength of the piece in the game. As the game develops, the relative values of the pieces will also change. A bishop positioned to control long, open diagonal spaces is usually more valuable than a knight stuck in a corner. Similar ideas apply to placing rooks on open files and knights on active, central squares. The standard valuation is one point for a pawn, three points for a knight or bishop, five points for a rook, and nine points for a queen (Hooper & Whyld 1992:438–39). These values are general throughout a game; in specific circumstances the values may be quite different-a knight can be more valuable than a queen in a particular decisive attack.

Piece names [edit]

Language	King	Queen	Rook	Bishop	Knight	Pawn	Chess	Check	Checkmate
figurine	♔ ♚	♕ ♛	♖ ♜	♗ ♝	♘ ♞	♙ ♟	...	+	#
Afrikaans	K Koning	D Dame (lady)	T Toring (tower)	L Loper (runner)	R Ruiter (rider)	(P) Pion	Skaak	Skaak	Skaakmat
Albanian	M Mbreti	Msh Mbretëresha (queen)	Ku Kulla (tower)	O Oficeri (officer)	Ka Kali (horse)	(U) Ushtari (soldier)	Shahu	Shah	Shah mat
Arabic	م مَلِك malik : king	و وزير wazïr : vizier	ر رخ/طابية rukhkh / ṭābiya : bishop	ف فيل fīl : elephant	ح حصان ħiṣān : horse	ب بيدق/عسكري baidaq : pawn / `askarī : soldier	شطرنج shaṭranj	كِش مَلِك kish malik	كِش مات kish māt
Armenian	Ա Արքա A : Arka	Թ Թագուհի T : T'agowhi	Ն Նավակ N : Navak	Փ Փիղ P : P'igh	Ձ Ձի Dz : Dzi	Զ Զինվոր Z : Zinvor	Շախմատ(Ճատրակ) Shaxmat (Chatrak)	Շախ Shax	Մատ Mat
Belarusian	К кароль	Вз візыр	Лд ладзьдзя	А афіцэр	В вершнік	(Л) латнік	Шахматы	Шах	Мат
Bulgarian	Ц цар (king)	Д дама (lady)	Т топ (cannon)	О офицер (officer)	К кон (horse)	(П) пешка	Шахмат/Шах	Шах	(Шах и) мат
Catalan	R rei	D dama/reina (lady/queen)	T torre (tower)	A alfil	C cavall (horse)	(P) peó	Escacs	Escac/Xec	Escac i mat
Chinese	K 王 (Wáng, king)	Q 后 (Hòu, queen)	R 車 (Jū, chariot)	B 象 (Xiàng, elephant)	N 馬 (Mǎ, horse)	(P) 兵 (Bīng, soldier)	國際象棋 (Guójì Xiàngqí)	將軍 (Jiāngjūn, general)	將死 (Jiāngsǐ, checkmate)
Croatian	K kralj	D dama/kraljica	T top/kula	L lovac/laufer	S skakač/konj	(P) pješak	Šah	Šah	Šah mat
Czech	K král (king)	D dáma (lady)	V věž (tower)	S střelec (shooter)	J jezdec (rider)	(P) pěšec (foot soldier)	Šachy	Šach	Mat
Danish	K konge (king)	D dronning (queen)	T tårn (tower)	L løber (runner)	S springer (jumper)	(B) bonde (peasant)	Skak	Skak	Skakmat
Dutch	K koning (king)	D dame/koningin (lady/queen)	T toren/kasteel (tower/castle)	L loper/raadsheer (runner/counsellor)	P paard (horse)	(pi) pion	Schaken	Schaak	Mat/Schaakmat
English	K king	Q queen	R rook	B bishop	N/Kt knight	(P) pawn	Chess	Check	Checkmate
Esperanto	R reĝo (king)	D damo (lady)	T turo (tower)	K kuriero (courier)	Ĉ ĉevalo (horse)	(P) peono	Ŝako	Ŝak	Ŝakmato
Estonian	K kuningas (king)	L lipp	V vanker	O oda	R ratsu	(E) ettur	Male	Tuli	Matt
Finnish	K kuningas (king)	D daami/kuningatar (lady/queen)	T torni (tower)	L lähetti (messenger)	R ratsu (horse)	(S) sotilas (soldier)	Shakki	Shakki	Matti/Shakkimatti
French	R roi (king)	D dame (lady)	T tour (tower)	F fou (jester)	C cavalier (rider)	(P) pion	Échecs	Échec	Échec et mat
Georgian	მ მეფე (Mep'e)	ლ ლაზიერი (Lazieri)	ე ეტლი (Etli)	კ კუ (Ku)	მ მხედარი (Mkhedari)	პ პაიკი (Paiki)	ჭადრაკი (Čadraki)	ქიში K'ishi	შამათი Shamat'i
German	K König (king)	D Dame (lady)	T Turm (tower)	L Läufer (runner)	S Springer/Pferd (jumper/horse)	(B) Bauer (peasant)	Schach	Schach	Schachmatt
Greek	Ρ βασιλιάς	Β βασίλισσα	Π πύργος	Α αξιωματικός	Ι ίππος	(Σ) πιόνι	Σκάκι	Σαχ	Mάτ
Hebrew	מ מלך	מה מלכה	צ צריח	ר רץ	פ פרש	רגלי	שחמט	שח	מט
Hindi	R राजा rājā	V वज़ीर vajīr	H हाथी hāthī	O ऊँठ ūṁṭ	G घोड़ा ghoṛā	(P) प्यादा pyādā	शतरंज Shatranj	शाह shāh	शाहमात shāhmāt
Hungarian	K király (king)	V vezér (chief)	B bástya (bastion)	F futó (runner)	H huszár (hussar)	(Gy) gyalog (ca. foot soldier)	Sakk	Sakk	Matt
Icelandic	K kóngur (king)	D drottning (queen)	H hrókur	B biskup (bishop)	R riddari (knight)	(P) peð	Skák	Skák	Skák og mát
Indonesian	R raja (king)	M menteri (minister/vizier)	B benteng (castle/fortress)	G gajah (elephant)	K kuda (horse)	(P) pion	Catur	Skak	Skak mati
Irish	R rí (king)	B banríon (queen)	C caiseal (bulwark)	E easpag (bishop)	D ridire (knight)	(F) fichillín/ceithearnach	Ficheall	Sáinn	Marbhsháinn
Italian	R re (king)	D donna (lady)	T torre (tower)	A alfiere	C cavallo (horse)	(P) pedone	Scacchi	Scacco	Scacco matto
Japanese	K キング (kingu)	Q クイーン (kuīn)	R ルーク (rūku)	B ビショップ (bishoppu)	N ナイト (naito)	(P) ポーン (pōn)	チェス (chesu)	王手/ チェック (chekku)	詰み/ チェックメイト (chekkumeito)
Korean	K 킹 (king)	Q 퀸 (kwin)	R 룩 (rug)	B 비숍 (bi syob)	N 나이트 (na i teu)	(P) 폰 (pon)	체스 (ce seu)	체크 (ce keu)	체크메이트 (ce keu me i teu)
Latin	R rex	G regina	T turris	E episcopus	Q eques	(P) pedes	Scacci	Scaccus	Mattus
Latvian	K karalis	D dāma	T tornis	L laidnis	Z zirgs	(B) bandinieks	Šahs	Šahs	Šahs un mats
Lithuanian	K karalius	V valdovė	B bokštas	R rikis	Ž žirgas	(P) pėstininkas	Šachmatai	Šach	Matas
Luxembourgish	K kinnek	D damm	T tuerm (tower)	L leefer (runner)	P päerd (horse)	(B) bauer (farmer)	Schach	Schach	Schachmatt
Mongolian	Н ноён (lord)	Б бэрс (ferz)	т тэрэг (chariot)	Т тэмээ (camel)	М морь (rider)	(Х) хүү (paige)	Шатар	шаг, дуг, цод	мад
Norwegian	K konge	D dronning	T tårn	L løper	S springer	(B) bonde	Sjakk	Sjakk	Sjakkmatt
Persian	ش شاه	و وزیر	ق/ر قلعه/رخ	ف فیل	ا اسب	س سرباز	شطرنج	کیش	کیش‌مات
Polish	K król	H hetman	W wieża	G goniec	S skoczek	(P) pion	szachy	szach	mat (szach-mat / szach i mat)
Portuguese	R rei (king)	D dama/rainha (lady/queen)	T torre (tower)	B bispo (bishop)	C cavalo (horse)	(P) peão	Xadrez	Xeque	Xeque-mate
Romanian	R rege	D regină	T turn	N nebun	C cal	(P) pion	Şah	Şah	Mat
Russian	Кр король	Ф ферзь	Л ладья	С слон	К конь	(П) пешка	Шахматы	Шах	Мат
Serbian	К краљ / kralj	Д дама / dama	Т топ / top	Л ловац / lovac	С скакач / skakač	(П) пешак / pešak	Шах / Šah	Шах / Šah	Мат / Mat
Sicilian	R re	D riggina	T turru	A alferu	S scecchu	(P) pidinu	Scacchi
Slovak	K kráľ	D dáma	V veža	S strelec	J jazdec	(P) pešiak	Šach	Šach	Mat/Šachmat
Slovene	K kralj	D dama	T trdnjava	L lovec	S skakač	(P) kmet	Šah	Šah	Mat/Šahmat
Spanish	R rey (king)	D dama/reina (lady/queen)	T torre (tower)	A alfil (elephant, in Arabic)	C caballo (horse)	(P) peón	Ajedrez	Jaque	Jaque mate
Swedish	K kung	D dam/drottning (lady/queen)	T torn (tower)	L löpare (runner)	S springare/häst (horse)	(B) bonde (peasant)	Schack	Schack	Schack matt
Tamil	K அரசன் aracaṉ	Q அரசி araci	R கோட்டை kōṭṭai	B அமைச்சர் / மந்திரி amaiccar / mantiri	N/Kt குதிரை kutirai	(P) காலாள் / சிப்பாய் kālāḷ / cippāy	சதுரங்கம் caturankam	முற்றுகை muṟṟukai	இறுதி முற்றுகை iṟuti muṟṟukai
Telugu	రాజు rāju	మంత్రి maṃtri	ఏనుగు ēnugu	శకటు śakaţu	గుర్రం gurraṃ	బంటు baṃţu	చదరంగం cadaraṃgaṃ	దాడి dāḍi	కట్టు kaţţu
Thai	ข ขุน (khun, king)	ต เม็ด (ตรี/มนตรี) (met (trī/montrī), counselor)	ร เรือ (reūa, ship)	ค โคน (khōn, elephant)	ม ม้า (mā, horse)	(บ) เบี้ย (bīa, menial)	หมากรุก (mākruk)	รุก (ruk, invade)	จน (jon, checkmate)
Turkish	Ş/K şah/kral	V vezir	K kale	F fil	A at	(P) er/piyon	Satranç	Şah	Mat
Ukrainian	Kр король	Ф ферзь	T тура	C слон	K кінь	(П) пішак	Шахи	Шах	Мат
Urdu	بادشاہ bādshāh	وزیر vazīr	رخ rukh	فيلہ fiyalah	گھوڑا ghōṛā	پیادہ pyādah	شطرنج šaṭranj	شہ sheh	شہمات shehmāt
Vietnamese	V Vua	H Hậu	X Xe	T Tượng	M Mã	_ Tốt	Cờ vua	Chiếu	Chiếu bí
Welsh	T teyrn/brenin	B brenhines	C castell	E esgob	M marchog	(G) gwerinwr	Gwyddbwyll	Siach	Siachmat

(Luiro 2009)

Notes [edit]

Man Ray set

References [edit]

Brace, Edward (1977), An Illustrated Dictionary of Chess, Craftwell, ISBN - get this book
Burgess, Graham (2009), The Mammoth Book of Chess (3rd ed.), Running Press, ISBN - get this book
Evans, Larry (1973), Evans on Chess, Conerstone Library, ISBN - get this book
Hooper, David; Whyld, Kenneth (1992), "Value of pieces", The Oxford Companion to Chess (2nd ed.), Oxford University Press, ISBN - get this book
Just, Tim; Burg, Daniel S. (2003), U.S. Chess Federation's Official Rules of Chess (5th ed.), McKay, ISBN - get this book
Luiro, Ari (2009), Chess pieces in different languages, retrieved 2011-11-04

External links [edit]

v t e Chess pieces

Rook Knight Bishop Queen King Pawn

Fairy pieces (Alfil Amazon Archbishop Berolina Pawn Chancellor Dabbaba Ferz Grasshopper Hippogonal Nightrider Wazir) Piece point values

v t e Chess

Outline	History World Championship Tournaments Computers Variants Rating system FIDE World Rankings Titles First-move advantage World records

Pieces	Pawn Knight Bishop Rook Queen King

Rules	Pawn promotion Castling En passant Check Checkmate Double check Draw By agreement Fifty-move rule Threefold repetition Perpetual check Stalemate Touch-move rule Time control Game clock

Terms	Battery Alekhine's gun Blunder Chess engine Chess notation Algebraic Descriptive PGN Annotation symbols Symbols in Unicode Fianchetto Gambit Key square King walk Pawns Connected Isolated Doubled Backward Passed Open file Half-open file Opposition Tempo The exchange Transposition X-ray Zugzwang Zwischenzug

Tactics	Cross-check Decoy Deflection Desperado Discovered attack Fork Interference Overloading Pawn storm Pin Sacrifice Skewer Triangulation Undermining Windmill Anti-computer

Strategies	Artificial castling Exchange Fortress Pawn structure Swindle Tarrasch rule

Main openings	English Opening Queen's Gambit Indian Defence Queen's Indian Defense Ruy Lopez Caro–Kann Defence Sicilian Defence French Defence Slav Defense

Endgames	Endgame tablebase King and pawn vs king Opposite-coloured bishops Pawnless endgame Queen and pawn vs queen Queen vs pawn Rook and pawn vs rook Lucena position Philidor position Two knights endgame Wrong bishop Wrong rook pawn

Checkmates	Checkmate pattern Bishop and knight checkmate Back-rank checkmate Fool's mate Scholar's mate Smothered mate Boden's Mate

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