By the way, do the “seahorse knights” remind you of something? I mean, besides a seahorse. They look so familiar somehow. I might have seen something similar in a cartoon or a painting. I’m not sure.
Unusual knight designs
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These are from a Costa Rican set. Wonderful set, heavily weighted.
Probably German, 1st half of the 20th century
Russian or Soviet chess set, early 20th century, wood & bone, weighted
Probably French, late 18th or early 19th century.
French or German bone bust set, 19th century.
What a great posting. My only complaint is, it's giving me the urge to buy another set.
I’m curious, what are some of the most unusual knight designs you’ve come across?
I have been obsessively exploring vintage Soviet sets, and I would say Soviet sets feature some of the most unusual knights. Here are a few I came across recently:
The set is said to be one-of-a-kind. I believe it; I’ve never seen anything quite like it. The black knight is arguably even better. Also, look at that cute little soldier pawn!
The Soviets have made quite a few potbelly knights (some of which are referred to as penguin knights, as seen in some Botvinnik–Flohr-II sets), but the knights in the ’50s Soviet set below are quite unusual! In fact, the whole set is really unusual. I like how the knights have different color eyes; the white knight looks albino with its red eyes, while the black knight may have cataract.
Below is another unusual Soviet set—this time from the ’80s. But the knights are definitely the most eye-catching pieces, with their sort of crescent shapes and radial manes.
Another reason the set is unusual is because of the gem inlays—even on the pawns, although some of them are missing gems. The white pieces feature red gems, while the black pieces feature white gems.
Below is yet another unusual Soviet set from the ’80s. These knights aren’t the craziest, and yet I’ve never seen any quite like them. I don’t quite know why, but something about them seems Egyptian. What also makes these knights quite unique is that the eyes are of the opposite color, which gives the white and black pieces quite a different vibe.
The white knights look quite cute with those beady eyes, whereas the black knights look fairly sinister, and gives the whole chess set an occult presence.
Below is a Soviet ‘Roses’ chess set from the ’70s, with one of the most peculiar knights I’ve come across.
I feel these knights are designed to be presented sideways. It’s interesting how the pieces together form a triangle, with two sturdy towers on each side.
Lastly, here is a ’40s coffee house chess set—this time Austrian rather than Soviet.
They have such unusual and disproportionally large heads! I particularly like the red pieces.
And that’s it for now. I might comment with more unusual knights when I find some worth showing. What unusual knights have you come across recently?