These are not chesspieces.
Bertram a more than competent turner in the 20c.
I've tried to make the text "screen readable"
Note the two 'piscine' figures in the left picture This set came up for auction in christies recently, see 'Cholet' album.
A 'Turkish' set by Bertram made £15,000 recently in auction. Bill will be pleased, he was always amazed at how much 'fools' would pay for his and his fathers chess sets.
Thanks to all published authors who I have quoted.
This is the Bertram set which came up in christies sale, 20 Sept. 2006. It made £15,000 on the hammer, that's about £18,000 to go. from the Ettore Chiesa Collection , Christies Sth. Ken.
This lotus blossom piece, (A Sanvito owns this set) Is typical of the mistakes made by carvers making a copy of an object they do not understand, note the 'veins' carved into the petals, which do not appear on the original objects, which seem to be lotus blossoms.
A. Sanvito again, the carving seems better than Bertrams Sanvito claims it is 1900 or before. My opinion is that this set itself is either a copy of Bertram Jones sets, or possibly just a copy of 'rosewater sprinkler objects' which may have passed through Beesons hands before he got Bertram to make them to sell in his shop and Macys.
Note that the screw threads on this object are of the type seen on British turnings, and quite dissimilar to those on the 'flower' in the next pictures.
This representation of a lotus blossom, a common eastern symbol, (of good luck I think) does not have the 'veins' on it that later copies have.
note the similarity to an Idian tapered screw thread. (even though it has had some glue added later)
The similatity between this rose water sprinkler and one of the 'chess' pieces in Wichmann is remarkable.
A 'Dieppe' king from a set made by Bertram Jones in about 1950. note the flat face.
A 'sand set' considered by Dr. George Dean to be 18c showing the very flat faced carving which was the 'hand' of Bertram Jones, who worked for Mackett-Beeson in the 1950s. Shows that even 'experts' can be caught out sometimes.
