The First Kings of Chess: Silver Coins of the Sasanian Dynasty (album)

The Book of Kings, the epic poem by the tenth century Persian poet Ferdowsi, contains the following passage on the origins of chess:

One day an ambassador from the king of Hind arrived at the Persian court of Khusru, and after an oriental exchange of courtesies, the ambassador produced rich presents from his sovereign and amongst them was an elaborate board with curiously carved pieces of ebony and ivory. He then issued a challenge: "Oh great king, fetch your wise men and let them solve the mysteries of this game. If they succeed my master the king of Hind will pay tribute as an overlord, but if they fail it will be proof that the Persians are of lower intellect and we shall demand tribute from Iran." The courtiers were shown the board, and after a day and a night in deep thought one of them solved the mystery and was richly rewarded by his delighted sovereign.

Thus was the Indian game chaturanga imported to Iran, where it would begin its evolution into today’s chess—a word derived from the Persian word shah.

Khusru and his two successors, Hormizd IV and Khusru II, presided over the Second Golden Age of the Sasanian Empire. The Sasanian kings were known for the elaborateness of their crowns. Some historians believe that the first chess pieces carved in the Sasanian Empire were the kings, whose ornate crowns were based on those worn by Khusru and his successors—as seen on these remarkable silver coins.