Giant Chess
Saturday, 17th December 2005 by James Turnbull
On the even years in the month of September, the locals of Marostica, North Italy play human chess on this Giant Chess Board.
The event dates back to 1454 when a Lord decided to marry off his two daughters to the winner (and loser) of the giant chess game. The pieces dressed in full costume (the knights are of course on real horses) and the two suitors commanded the moves. The winner of the game was to marry the elder sister while the loser got to marry the younger (I bet she was thrilled with the idea).
More info and pictures on the official website.
Thanks: Alessandro G.
Was anybody else’s first thought of the chess scene from “History Of The World Part I”? 😀
Actually I was thinking of the chess scene from harry potter 🙂
I’ve actually been in that very square when I was in Italy. I’ve seen some pictures of the actual human chess game it is looks soooo cool. They have everything all set up including actual horses. It looks amazing.
Oh yah, if you go a little north you see that building with the graval area and apparently on a clear day you can see all the way to Venice. When we went it was kinda foggy and visibilty was limited, however you could still see for miles.
So, who won?
i need to submit
lol i thought of Harry Potter right away soz im a big fan but human chess sounds cool!
hey, I used to live there…
every two years there is a chess match with real players