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February 1, 2017

Featured Chess Set: February 2017

Bobbie Glass donated February’s Featured Chess Set to the World Chess Hall of Fame (WCHOF). Glass received the exuberantly colored set as a gift from a friend while in high school. The set, along with its accompanying hot pink and bright red shag carpet board, is part of the collection of the WCHOF, which features a diverse array of sets from across centuries and around the world, illustrating how chess has evolved over the course of its over 1500-year history.

This set, drawing its theme from medieval courts, was created using molds designed by Duncan Ceramic Products, Inc. (now iLoveToCreate). Founded by Erma Duncan, an artist with a passion for ceramics, the company was incorporated in 1955. At the time this set was designed, the company sold ceramic products for hobbyists, including molds, and established a national training program for ceramics teachers. Perhaps due to the rising popularity of chess in the United States during the era, the company copyrighted at least six designs for chess sets between 1965 and 1973. Hobbyists could customize the sets with paint or colorful glazes.