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ShopNBU.com > Wood Chess Sets > Olive Wood Chess Sets Product Info
Wood Chess Sets Product Info
Wooden Chess Sets are hand-crafted from Mediterranean olivewood and rosewood, by Tunisian wood-turning artisans.
 
Tunisian Hand-carved Mediterranean Olive Wood Chess Sets
Mediterranean Olive Wood Chess Sets from Tunisia
Hand-Carved Olive Wood Chess Boards & Chess Pieces
Hand-Carved Tunisian Mediterranean Olive Wood Chess Sets have a history as rich and interesting as the history of the country of Tunisia and of its people. The diversity of cultural influences and the traditional wood-turning skills that are passed down from one generation of craftsman to the next, combine to create unique, one-of-a-kind olivewood chess boards and chess pieces that are truly works of art.
 The olive wood is interesting, in its own right, with no two grains being alike. Mediterranean olivewood is heavy, dense and durable, with a distinctive red pigment in its grain. Colors also range in nuances of cream to dark brown, with irregular gray, brown, and black lines. The complex and irregular veins give the carved olive wood the appearance of marble. Olive wood requires minimal care. An occasional rubbing with natural olive oil will restore the wood's natural luster. Olive wood is an expensive wood, due to its limited availability in the U.S. and in many other parts of the world.
 It is interesting to note that the red pigmented tiles (available on select chess boards) are actually inlays, made of another rare, expensive and exotic wood known as Rosewood. The two woods, olive wood and rosewood, provide interesting contrast in both grain and natural pigmentation, when placed next to eachother. Each block used to create the chess board finish, is inlaid in random directions to add even more interesting texture and random grain pattern. Basically, this creates an artistic mosaic of rare and exotic woods.
 Last, but certainly not least, olivewood and rosewood chess sets of unique design are also now available. Each chess board is absolutely unique, with no two being the exact same dimension, shape or color. The beauty of these pieces is that you are given the rare opportunity of seeing olive wood in its natural form and shape, without having the edges routed to form a certain geometric design. You will still have the rigid square lines that comprise the checkered playing board surface, yet you will have the interesting border shape that is true to natural olive wood. These chess sets will be available in your choice of either black pigmented inlays or red pigmented rosewood inlays.
Features of Mediterranean Wood Chess Sets from Tunisia
 
Olive Wood Chess Sets Feature:
- Each wooden chess set is hand-crafted and unique, making each set highly collectible
- Two sliding drawer compartments for convenient storage of chess pieces
- Mediterranean olive wood grain gives the chess set a marble-like finish, creating a beautiful display piece
- ROSEWOOD inlay (available on selected chess boards) creates a delightful contrast to the darker hues of the natural olive wood!
- Chess boards & individual chess pieces are intricately carved in fine detail
- Natural looking pigments enhance the individual chess pieces, and checkerboard design
- Care is minimal, requiring only an occassional rubbing with natural olive oil to enhance the olive wood grain
- Available in a variety of unique shapes & designs, and in several different sizes!
- Full set of hand-carved olive wood chess pieces included with each chess set!
Availability:
- Usually ships (leaves the warehouse) in 2-3 business days.
- Ships to the Contental US, Alaska, Hawaii, & Canada. (If shipping to Alaska, Hawaii or Canada, please email us for a shipping quote, before ordering.)
- WILL ship to most APO/FPO or PO Box addresses.
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Tunisian Cultural Influences
 Throughout its history, a variety of nations held control of Tunisia, and people from other nations migrated to this North African country. This led to the variety of cultures living in Tunisia today. These Mediterranean cultural influences are apparent in the beautiful designs, patterns, and glazes of traditional Tunisian ceramics, cloth tapestries, woven carpets, and the intricate olive wood carvings that Tunisia is known for all over the world.
Brief History of Tunisia
Native Tunisians are descendants of indigenous Berber and Arab tribes that migrated to North Africa during the seventh century. Recorded history in Tunisia begins with the arrival of Phoenicians, who founded Carthage and other North African settlements.
Carthage was captured by the Romans in AD 146, and the Romans continued to rule North Africa until they were defeated by Germanic tribesmen from Europe in the fifth century.
The Muslim conquest in the seventh century transformed North Africa. Tunisia became a center of Arab culture until its assimilation into the Turkish Ottoman Empire in the 16th century.
In the 19th century, in 1869, an international financial commission was formed, and France, the United Kingdom, and Italy established control over the Tunisian economy. France later established a protectorate in Tunisia, in 1881. Resistance to French rule continued into the 20th century, and this rise of nationalism led to Tunisia's independence in 1956.
Traditional Olive Wood Artistry
Hand-carved Tunisian Olive Wood Chess Sets have a history as rich and interesting as the history of the country of Tunisia and of its people. The diversity of cultural influences and the traditional wood-turning skills that are passed down from one generation of craftsman to the next, combine to create unique, one-of-a-kind olive wood pieces that are truly works of art.
Mediterranean olive wood is heavy, dense and durable, with a distinctive red pigment in its grain. Colors also range in nuances of cream to dark brown, with irregular gray, brown, and black lines. The complex and irregular veins give the carved wood the appearance of marble. It is one of the most expensive woods around, and it is rare to find olive wood carvings, or even olive wood in the United States.
 The olive wood is interesting, in its own right, with no two grains being alike. Olive wood is easily recognized and differentiated from other woods by its unique and aesthetic grain. The artistically smooth and exotic grain of the olive wood, tags it as the most creative wood known to man. It is very difficult to match the grain of two pieces since the pattern is completely hidden in the heart of the wood. This durable wood needs only an occasional rubbing with olive oil to bring out the pattern of the wood grain.
The characteristics of the olive wood renders it an ideal material for a variety of crafted wares and decorating accessories such as the cutting boards, trays, coasters, cutlery, bowls, chess sets and sculpture found in marketplaces and households throughout Mediterranean countries. This is especially true in Tunisia, where the tradition is deeply rooted in local olive wood artistry.
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