Cambridge, Trinity College Library, VI.18.3

Playe of the Chesse Facsimile Edition

Our price

More Buying Choices

Request Info

The Playe of the Chesse is a copy of William Caxton's English-language translation of the Tractatus de Ludo Scacorum by Jacobus de Cessolis, in which chess is understood as an allegory of the morals of society and the military. Printed by Caxton at Westminster in 1483, the Trinity College copy is a reprint of the 1474 original, accompanied by a new prologue. The spaces for enlarged initials were never filled, but its twenty-three woodcuts are hand-colored. The publication is one of the first English books to incorporate woodcut illustrations.

We have 1 facsimile edition of the manuscript "Playe of the Chesse": Game of Chess facsimile edition, published by Scolar Press, 1976

Request Info / Price
Printed book description compiled by Daniela Rovida.
Please Read
International social justice movements and the debates that ensued prompted us to start considering the contents of our website from a critical point of view. This has led us to acknowledge that most of the texts in our database are Western-centered. We have asked the authors of our content to be aware of the underlying racial and cultural bias in many scholarly sources, and to try to keep in mind multiple points of view while describing the manuscripts. We also recognize that this is yet a small, first step towards fighting inequality.

If you notice any trace of racist or unjust narratives in our communications, please help us be part of the change by letting us know.

Game of Chess

London: Scolar Press, 1976

  • Commentary (English) by Blake, Norman F.
  • Full-size color reproduction of the entire original document, Playe of the Chesse: the facsimile attempts to replicate the look-and-feel and physical features of the original document; pages are trimmed according to the original format; the binding might not be consistent with the current document binding.

Our Price

More Buying Choices

Request Info