Chess Supply Company, The House of Staunton, Lists Thirteen Little-Known Facts About Chess
HUNTSVILLE, Ala., Jan. 18, 2018 /PRNewswire-iReach/ -- Wood chess board manufacturer, The House of Staunton, shares ten facts most people don't know about chess.
Today chess is played all over the world by several million people. However, very few people know about chess's most interesting facts. Chess supplier, The House of Staunton, shares them:
1. There are more possible unique chess games than electrons?while there are approximately 1079 electrons in the universe, there are 10120 unique chess games.
2. The term "checkmate" originates from the Persian phrase "Shah Mat." "Shah Mat" roughly translates to the "king is dead."
3. The pawn's ability to move two squares on its first turn originated in Spain in the late 1200s.
4. Chess is sometimes played by blindfolded players. A blindfolded chess record was set in the mid-1900s in Budapest?the player played 52 games blindfolded and won more than half of those games.
5. A book about chess was among the first books ever printed in English.
6. The oldest complete surviving chess set was discovered in Scotland on the Isle of Lewis. Since its discovery, it has made at least one notable appearance in a major motion picture.
7. In German and Spanish, the pawn is a farmer, not a soldier.
8. Chess pieces didn't resemble actual soldiers, bishops, kings, and queens until the game appeared in Europe.
9. Shatranj was a predecessor to chess?in this game the Queen was a minister or vizier.
10. A game of chess was played between earth and space by using a chess board designed to deal with weightlessness. The game was played between an astronaut crew and their ground crew in 1970.
11. The longest chess move ever made took over 2 hours.
12. One of the youngest chess prodigies beat the world's strongest players at age 11.
13. The title "World Chess Champion" was an unofficial title for several years.
About The House of Staunton: The House of Staunton is an American locally owned and operated small business. For over 27 years, they have manufactured the world's finest chess equipment. They sell a wide variety of chess sets, chess boards, and chess boxes, and are the equipment provider for top chess tournaments worldwide. Their chess sets are featured in numerous movies and television shows as well as on book covers and in print ads!
Media Contact: Shawn P. Sullivan, The House of Staunton, Inc., 256.858.8070, [email protected]
News distributed by PR Newswire iReach: https://ireach.prnewswire.com
SOURCE The House of Staunton
These press releases may also interest you
|
News published on and distributed by:
