Nekva’s Legacy: Austrian ‘Old Vienna’ Coffee House Chess Set, post-WWI

Nekvasil’’s Legatum (Nekva’s Legacy); 32 medium-sized, antique chess pieces without board, Austrian, light brown vs black, weighted, artistically restored and antiqued, c.1920-1950

Height: King 3 3/4” or 8.5cm, weight 15g, base width 2.7cm; Queen 7.5cm wt. 13g, Bishop 5.5cm 9g, Knight 5.3cm 9g, Rook 4.5cm 10g, Pawns 4.7cm 8g.

W: Deep Blue felt pads; B: Black felt pads

 

Nekva’s Legacy is a fantastic example of the classic ‘kaffeehaus’ style that dominated the fashionable gaming rooms and cafes of the Austrian Empire from the late 1800s on. These archetypal pieces, with their tall, pointed crowns, opposite coloured bishop domes and unique ‘twisted’ knight manes (see pic 6) are of the “Viennese Coffee House Style” and were almost certainly produced in the workshop of The Jacoby Nekvasil Company (est. c.1885), based in the Old Ottakring manufacturing district of Vienna.

 

The original pieces, as purchased, had a condition that the late Nicholas Lanier (chess-museum.com) called a “bubbled” effect, due to “trapped dirt” (I call this ‘finger-slime’) in the porous grain of the wood. This slime has been carefully removed and the raw wood reworked and artistically restored to a decidedly more uniform, antiqued condition. During this restoration process, weight was also added to make the pieces more enjoyable to play with over the board – a mission I believe I have accomplished, all round!

 

Repairs: Two chipped white pawn collars and one black collar. One ear of a black knight. See more photographs @ our HQ, thechessschach.com.

 

Nekva’s Legacy is UV resistant and ideal for display as well as casual play. Both kings carry the hand-painted iridescent pearl ‘power’ signature of the artist on their bases and are accompanied by a ‘Certificate of Artistry’ mailed out separately, once we tally up how many listings passed through our galleries in 2023 – “all good things” as the old adage goes…

 

* B&W photo source: S.B. Cohen, Rubinstein vs. Tarrasch, Bad Kissingen, Germany, c.1928

 

Etsy Set Price: $750.00 

 

Ref Code: NL23