Download or read book Chess and Other Games Pieces from Islamic Lands written by Deborah Freeman Fahid and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Among the many treasures of the al-Sabah Collection, Kuwait, are hundreds of chess and other games pieces dating from the 7th to the 19th centuries ce. Intricately crafted in a rich variety of materials, including ivory, wood, ceramic, glass, jade and agate, these tiny objects are of enormous historical and artistic significance. They not only mark the evolution of familiar games into their modern forms, but also evoke the imperial palaces, military camps and herders' tents in which they were played over many centuries, from the Sasanian period through the Islamic era in Central Asia, Iran, present-day Iraq and northern India. The chess pieces include both early figural sets and the more abstract forms that later became popular throughout the Islamic world. Dice, pachesi sets and a medieval Arabic treatise on chess complete the collection.
Download or read book Players and Pawns written by Gary Alan Fine and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2015-08-06 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A chess match seems as solitary an endeavor as there is in sports: two minds, on their own, in fierce opposition. In contrast, Gary Alan Fine argues that chess is a social duet: two players in silent dialogue who always take each other into account in their play. Surrounding that one-on-one contest is a community life that can be nearly as dramatic and intense as the across-the-board confrontation. Fine has spent years immersed in the communities of amateur and professional chess players, and with Players and Pawns he takes readers deep inside them, revealing a complex, brilliant, feisty world of commitment and conflict. Within their community, chess players find both support and challenges, all amid a shared interest in and love of the long-standing traditions of the game, traditions that help chess players build a communal identity. Full of idiosyncratic characters and dramatic gameplay, Players and Pawns is a celebration of the fascinating world of serious chess.
Download or read book The Immortal Game written by David Shenk and published by Anchor Canada. This book was released on 2011-03-04 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A surprising, charming, and ever-fascinating history of the seemingly simple game that has had a profound effect on societies the world over. Why has one game, alone among the thousands of games invented and played throughout human history, not only survived but thrived within every culture it has touched? What is it about its thirty-two figurative pieces, moving about its sixty-four black and white squares according to very simple rules, that has captivated people for nearly 1,500 years? Why has it driven some of its greatest players into paranoia and madness, and yet is hailed as a remarkably powerful intellectual tool? Nearly everyone has played chess at some point in their lives. Its rules and pieces have served as a metaphor for society, influencing military strategy, mathematics, artificial intelligence, and literature and the arts. It has been condemned as the devil’s game by popes, rabbis, and imams, and lauded as a guide to proper living by other popes, rabbis, and imams. Marcel Duchamp was so absorbed in the game that he ignored his wife on their honeymoon. Caliph Muhammad al-Amin lost his throne (and his head) trying to checkmate a courtier. Ben Franklin used the game as a cover for secret diplomacy.In his wide-ranging and ever-fascinating examination of chess, David Shenk gleefully unearths the hidden history of a game that seems so simple yet contains infinity. From its invention somewhere in India around 500 A.D., to its enthusiastic adoption by the Persians and its spread by Islamic warriors, to its remarkable use as a moral guide in the Middle Ages and its political utility in the Enlightenment, to its crucial importance in the birth of cognitive science and its key role in the aesthetic of modernism in twentieth-century art, to its twenty-first-century importance in the development of artificial intelligence and use as a teaching tool in inner-city America, chess has been a remarkably omnipresent factor in the development of civilization. Indeed, as Shenk shows, some neuroscientists believe that playing chess may actually alter the structure of the brain, that it may be for individuals what it has been for civilization: a virus that makes us smarter.
Download or read book A History of Chess written by Harold James Ruthven Murray and published by . This book was released on 1913 with total page 966 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Standardization in the Middle Ages written by Line Cecilie Engh and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2024-11-18 with total page 351 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We live in a world riven through with standards. To understand more of their deep, rich past is to understand ourselves better. The two volumes, Standardization in the Middle Ages. Volume 1: The North and Standardization in the Middle Ages. Volume 2: Europe, turn to the Middle Ages to give a deeper understanding of the medieval ideas and practices that produced--and were produced by--standards and standardization. At first glance, the Middle Ages might appear an unlikely place to look for standardization. The editors argue that, on the contrary, generating predictability is a precondition for meaningful cultural interaction in any historical period and that we may look to the Middle Ages to learn more about the historical, social, and cognitive processes of standardization. This multidisciplinary venture, which includes medievalists from the fields of history, intellectual history, art history, philology, numismatics, and more, as well as scholars of cognitive science, informatics, and anthropology, interrogates how medieval people and groups envisioned and enforced predictability, uniformity, and order, and how they attempted to obtain and maintain standards across vast distances and heterogeneous social and cultural structures.
Download or read book Birth of the Chess Queen written by Marilyn Yalom and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2009-05-13 with total page 311 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Marilyn Yalom has written the rare book that illuminates something that always has been dimly perceived but never articulated, in this case that that the power of the chess queen reflects the evolution of female power in the western world.” —Cleveland Plain Dealer Everyone knows that the queen is the most dominant piece in chess, but few people know that the game existed for five hundred years without her. It wasn't until chess became a popular pastime for European royals during the Middle Ages that the queen was born and was gradually empowered to become the king's fierce warrior and protector. Birth of the Chess Queen examines the five centuries between the chess queen's timid emergence in the early days of the Holy Roman Empire to her elevation during the reign of Isabel of Castile. Marilyn Yalom, inspired by a handful of surviving medieval chess queens, traces their origin and spread from Spain, Italy, and Germany to France, England, Scandinavia, and Russia. In a lively and engaging historical investigation, Yalom draws parallels between the rise of the chess queen and the ascent of female sovereigns in Europe, presenting a layered, fascinating history of medieval courts and internal struggles for power.
Download or read book The Chess Revolution written by Peter Doggers and published by Union Square & Co.. This book was released on 2024-10-29 with total page 265 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of the world’s top chess journalists in the world explores why, after 1,500 years of existence, chess has never been more relevant than now. Chess is not just one of the greatest games ever devised. It has inspired writers, painters, and filmmakers, and was a secret mover behind technical revolutions like artificial intelligence that are transforming society. In this fascinating pop culture history of the game and its impact, acclaimed Chess.com journalist Peter Doggers (also their news and events director), reveals how computers and the Internet have further strengthened the timeless magic of chess in the digital era, leading to a new peak in popularity and cultural relevance. Doggers explores chess as a cultural phenomenon from its earliest beginnings in ancient India to its biggest stars and most dramatic moments to the impact of the internet and AI. The book is illustrated with approximately 40 photographs and artworks.
Download or read book The Abbasid Caliphate written by Tayeb El-Hibri and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2021-04-22 with total page 363 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The period of the Abbasid Caliphate (750–1258) has long been recognized as the formative period of Islamic civilization with its various achievements in the areas of science, literature, and culture. This history of the Abbasid Caliphate from its foundation in 750 and golden age under Harun al-Rashid to the conquest of Baghdad by the Mongols in 1258 examines the Caliphate as an empire and institution, and probes its influence over Islamic culture and society. Ranging widely to survey the entire five-century history of the Abbasid dynasty, Tayeb El-Hibri examines the resilience of the Caliphate as an institution, as a focal point of religious definitions, and as a source of legitimacy to various contemporary Islamic monarchies. The study revisits ideas of 'golden age' and 'decline' with a new reading, tries to separate Abbasid history from the myths of the Arabian Nights, and shows how the legacy of the caliphs continues to resonate in the modern world in direct and indirect ways.
Download or read book The Patricians of Nishapur written by Richard W. Bulliet and published by Acls History E-Book Project. This book was released on 1972 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book A World of Chess written by Jean-Louis Cazaux and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2017-10-17 with total page 407 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With more than 400 illustrations, and detailed maps, this immense and deeply researched account of the history of chess covers not only the modern international game, derived from Persian and Arab roots, but a broad spectrum of variants going back 1500 years, some of which are still played in various parts of the world. The evolution of strategic board games, especially in India, China and Japan, is discussed in detail. Many more recent chess variants (board sizes, new pieces, 3-D, etc.) are fully covered. Instructions for play are provided, with historical context, for every game presented.
Download or read book Chess Masterpieces written by George Dean and published by Harry N. Abrams. This book was released on 2010-10-01 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Origins of chess - Islam's influence - Medieval Europe - Materials - War as a theme - France - Germany - The British Isles - Mediterranean countries - Central Europe - Russia - The Far East - Western hemispere - Twentieth century - Twenty-first century.
Download or read book When Asia Was the World written by Stewart Gordon and published by Da Capo Press. This book was released on 2008 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Describes the important influence of Asia's great civilization on the West, as traveling merchants, scholars, philosophers, and religious figures brought the wisdom of China and the Middle East to medieval Europe during the Dark Ages.
Download or read book It s All a Game written by Tristan Donovan and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2017-05-30 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “[A] timely book . . . a wonderfully entertaining trip around the board, through 4,000 years of game history.” —The Wall Street Journal Board games have been with us even longer than the written word. But what is it about this pastime that continues to captivate us well into the age of smartphones and instant gratification? In It’s All a Game, Tristan Donovan, British journalist and author of Replay: The History of Video Games, opens the box on the incredible and often surprising history and psychology of board games. He traces the evolution of the game across cultures, time periods, and continents, from the paranoid Chicago toy genius behind classics like Operation and Mouse Trap, to the role of Monopoly in helping prisoners of war escape the Nazis, and even the scientific use of board games today to teach artificial intelligence how to reason and how to win. With these compelling stories and characters, Donovan ultimately reveals why board games—from chess to Monopoly to Risk and more—have captured hearts and minds all over the world for generations. “Splendid . . . A quick and breezy read, it doesn’t just tell the fascinating stories of the (often struggling) individuals who created our favorite games. It also manages to convey the entire sweep of board game history, from the earliest forms of checkers to modern-day surprise hits like Settlers of Catan.” —Mashable “Artfully weaves together culture, business, and ways games impact society.” —Booklist “A fascinating and insightful discussion not only of games past, but the socioeconomic and historical factors that contributed to their popularity.” —Chicago Review of Books
Download or read book Ceramics from Islamic Lands written by Oliver Watson and published by . This book was released on 2006-01 with total page 512 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this richly illustrated volume, Oliver Watson presents a comprehensive history of ceramics from Islamic lands. Clear and informative essays examine the art, archaeology and collecting of Islamic pottery, ceramic families and technical traditions, and Islamic pottery over five centuries. This is an important book that provides a whole new framework for the understanding and study of Islamic ceramics, and will be of great interest to the general reader as well as being an invaluable reference work for the student and specialist.
Download or read book The Lewis Chessmen written by James Robinson and published by British Museum Publications Limited. This book was released on 2004 with total page 64 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Lewis chessmen were found hidden on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland, in the early nineteenth century. Probably made in Norway around AD 1150-1200, they consist of elaborately worked walrus ivory in the forms of seated kings and queens, mitred bishops, knights on their mounts, standing warders and pawns. This book takes a look at the many theories surrounding the ownership of the pieces, why they were hidden and how exactly they were discovered, and places them in the wider context of the ancient game of chess and secular culture of the Middle Ages.
Download or read book The Immortal Game written by David Shenk and published by Anchor. This book was released on 2007-09-04 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A fresh, engaging look at how 32 carved pieces on a Chess board forever changed our understanding of war, art, science, and the human brain. Chess is the most enduring and universal game in history. Here, bestselling author David Shenk chronicles its intriguing saga, from ancient Persia to medieval Europe to the dens of Benjamin Franklin and Norman Schwarzkopf. Along the way, he examines a single legendary game that took place in London in 1851 between two masters of the time, and relays his own attempts to become as skilled as his Polish ancestor Samuel Rosenthal, a nineteenth-century champion. With its blend of cultural history and Shenk’s lively personal narrative, The Immortal Game is a compelling guide for novices and aficionados alike.
Download or read book Londonistan written by Melanie Phillips and published by Encounter Books. This book was released on 2006 with total page 243 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Examines how the erosion of traditional British identity and the appeasement of radical Islamic groups has encouraged the growth of Islamic extremism in Great Britain and made London a hub for terrorist recruitment and activity in Europe.
