The myths of the ancient Greeks divide into several groups. The most significant group is that of the Olympian Gods.

Zeus is the father god and the most important of his fellow deities. Other myths concern secondary deities, heroes and explanations of natural phenomena.

Just as Greek mythology was affected by cults of other lands, so the more important Greek gods influenced the later Roman Gods. Some of the figures selected for this chess set are, therefore, given both the Greek and Roman names.

Foremost in the temple of Greek gods were the Olympians, the elite range of gods and goddesses who were believed to live with their father, Zeus, on Mount Olympus.

King
Zeus (Jupiter) - Father of the gods and men, dominion over heaven, earth and sky, presiding over the whole social order. Zeus was paradoxically, a very human god, bad tempered and lecherous, having numerous love affairs.

Queen
Aphrodite (Venus) - The goddess of love was worshipped in Greece, both as a goddess of pure love and sensual lust. She was also the patron of prostitutes. Homer describes her as the daughter of Zeus and Dione.

Bishop
Asklepios (Asculapius) - The god of healing and medicine. According to Homer, he was taught the art of healing by Chiron. Asklepios was the son of Apollo one of the noblest of the Olympian gods. He often incurred the wrath of Zeus and his brother Hades, as his skill as a healer could deprive Zeus of revenge by bringing his victim back to life and also deprive Hades of inhabitants from his kingdom by ensuring they did not die.

Knight
Centaur - The strange part horse, part man creature was originally portrayed as a horse with the
head of man. This form developed into the half man, half horse Centaur. These creatures are very old in Greek legend, much older than Homer, appearing in both of his epics. With the exception of Chiron, selected for our chess set, they were a very wild and lustful race. Chiron differed from the others as being of human origin and was the wise and kind medicine man.

Rook
The Corinthian column of the Classical Order has been selected to create a balance in the design of our chess pieces.

Pawn
Pan - The god of shepherds and countryside, represented with horns, legs of a goat and with the
pipes. According to Homer, he was the son of Hermes and, though a minor god in Classical Greece, Pan enjoyed a very healthy aspect. He was the source of groundless panic and fear that overcame people in desolate and lonely places. It was from Pan that Apollo learnt the art of prophecy.

Chess Board
This chess set is available with the pieces on their own or with the board. Buy the pieces and board together and get a great discount. If you would like to pick your own chess board for the pieces, please order the pieces only and add to basket a chess board of your choice.