Russian Kholmogory Chess Set,Walrus Ivory, 18th C.

Carved walrus ivory classic Russian Kholmogory Chess Set, Turks vs Persians 18th Century. The King is seated on a throne, the Queen is a man holding a pike, an advisor (vizier) to the King, or "ferz" in Russian. Rooks are caravels, Bishops are elephants,the stained set having a rider climbing its backs and knights ride horses. This set likely inspired by the The Ottoman–Persian War of 1743–1746 fought between the Ottoman Empire and the Afsharid dynasty of Iran. Housed in a much later pine box with velvet lining. A letter and receipt from 1935 erroneously states that this set is Indo-Chinese, circa 1670. Condition: Condition: Box is in rough shape, Pieces are in very good condition, noting one ear missing from each of two horses, some very minor age checking. History: Nader Shah dreamed of an empire which would stretch from the Indus to the Bosphorus. Therefore he raised an army of 200,000, which consisted largely of rebellious Central Asian tribesmen, and he planned to march towards Constantinople, but after he learned that the Ottoman ulema was preparing for a holy war against Persia, he turned eastward. He captured Kirkuk, Arbil and besieged Mosul on 14 September 1743. The siege lasted for 40 days. The Pasha of Mosul, Hajji Hossein Al Jalili, successfully defended Mosul and Nader Shah was forced to retreat. The offensive was halted due to revolts in Persia (1743–44) over high taxes.[citation needed] Hostilities also spilled into Georgia, where Prince Givi Amilakhvari employed an Ottoman force in a futile attempt to undermine the Persian influence and dislodge Nader's Georgian allies, Princes Teimuraz and Erekle. In early 1744 Nader Shah resumed his offensive and besieged Kars, but returned to Daghestan to suppress a revolt. He returned afterwards and routed an Ottoman army at the battle of Kars in August 1745. The war disintegrated. Nader Shah grew insane and started to punish his own subjects, which led to a revolt from early 1745 to June 1746. In 1746 peace was made. The boundaries were unchanged and Baghdad remained in Ottoman hands. Nader Shah dropped his demand for Ja'fari recognition. The Porte was pleased and dispatched an ambassador but before he could arrive, Nader Shah was assassinated by his own officers.