11/01/2014 | Posted in: Chess Places
Chess is Big!
No, I mean really big! Many parts of the world have street chess available to the general public. In most cases, these are table sets that anyone can use on first-come first-served basis. However, there are a few places that take this to an entirely new level by providing life-sized pieces on huge boards.
The Icelandic people are true chess-thusiasts! For them, the question is not, “Do you play?” Instead it is, “How well do you play?” I had my board wiped clean by a nine-year old in all of 15 minutes. As he laughed at me (I was over twice his age), he explained that he was not even the best in his class at school. Nice kid!
Street chess on Lækjargata in midtown (Miðbæ) Reykjavik, Iceland in the Spring of 1981.
Attached is a picture I took in Reykjavik, Iceland in 1981. I had watched them building the board on Lækjargata in midtown (Miðbæ) during the previous Autumn and I was excited to see it put to use. The pieces are made of wood and roll on casters to make them easy to move. This set was recently seen in the Art of Chess gallery in the Reykjavik Museum of Art (Listasafn Reykjavíkur). How many museums do you know that have a gallery just for chess?
There are four normal-sized boards set on the cardinal compass points around the perimeter of the large board. I am not sure if these were intended for additional games, or for players and judges to use during the game on the big board. I never saw them used.
If you ever stop-over in Reykjavik, make it a point to visit the Big Game in midtown.
For you geography nuts: This photo was taken facing east (north to the left) at about 1:00 in the afternoon. Note the shadows. During the early part of the year, the sun is on the southern horizon, rather than the west.
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