English Ivory Chess Set, William Lund, ca. 1850

English Ivory Chess Set, William Lund, ca. 1850

Ivory chess set with a king size of 10.5 cm, presumably from the workshop of William Lund in London, probably dating to 1840/1850. White pieces in natural ivory, the other side stained in red. The Kings have what is usually wrongly described as a Maltese cross, but which in fact is more correctly described as a cross pattée. The Queens have a feather finial. The set is not stamped, but sets of this design have been repeatedly attributed to William Lund, and also the knights show the typical Lund design.

William Lund came from a well-known family of turners. Already his father Thomas Lund produced extraordinary and noble chess sets made of ivory since the beginning of the 19th century. Thomas Lund and his workshop are first listed in the London directory in 1804 under the address Cornhill 57 (later Cornhill 56 was also mentioned). In the directory he is listed first as a pen and quill maker, later also as a manufacturer of portable writing desks. His son William Lund is first mentioned in the directory in 1835. The location of his workshop is first given as 24 Fleet Street, later number 23 is included. After the death of his father Thomas in 1843 William also took over the workshop at Cornhill 56 and 57, and from 1845 William Lund's job title according to the register is also ivory turner.
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