The Austrian Coffeehouse Series Chess Pieces - 4.0" King

The Austrian Coffeehouse chessmen, like our other reproduction Victorian era Playing sets, have been reintroduced with those special touches that only the Maestro can add, and arevpart of the Camaratta Pre-Staunton Signature Series.

These late Victorian Austrian coffeehouse chess sets, also known as Old Vienna or Viennese Coffeehouse chess sets, have an elegant charm and had a ubiquitous presence through parts of Europe extending into the 20th Century. The King of our exquisite recreation stands 4″ tall and are pleasantly weighted.

This design was certainly influenced by Staunton pattern. The chessmen are very durable with few, if any, weak areas in the design which could be broken during spirited handling. Due to their broad bases, the chessmen are quite stable and, as a result, these sets are quite playable and have a pleasant board presence.

These chessmen became the standard fare in Central Europe – the lands of the Austrian monarchy, as well as Germany, Switzerland, and Northern Italy. Major tournaments like Vienna 1898, Semmering 1927 and Karlsbad 1929 were played using the Austrian Coffeehouse design chessmen. The popularity of these sets seemed to have waned after World War II, but are still seen today in some European venues.

Viennese Coffeehouse chess sets were originally produced in sizes from 2″ to well over a 5″ King. Although they had baize base pads, they were normally not weighted. We have corrected that minor deficiency by cushioning our precise recreations atop plush green English Baize base pads.