Saint-Louis Jeu Prestige Chess Set

The Saint-Louis Jeu Prestige Chess Set is a complete 32-piece crystal chess set with a board of clear and satin-finished crystal cubes resting on a thermal powder-coated aluminum base, each cube strategically mirrored to create the optical illusion of a levitating set. The pieces face each other in clear crystal and a chosen accent color — available in several colorways including flannel grey, sky blue, amber, and dark blue — and each has a design based on the way it moves from square to square.

The king and queen both borrow their shapes from the Twist 1586 collection’s decanter stopper, one upside down and one right side up, each adorned with bevels whose tops evoke crowns. The bishop renews the Botticelli stopper, spinning and staggering as it moves diagonally. The rook is carved from the part of a stopper that keeps a decanter airtight, its cylindrical base suited to straight-line movement. The pawn reinterprets the Amadeus stopper as a Templar’s helmet, the most sacrificed piece on the board. The knight alone departs from this vocabulary, its more vivid and naturalistic aspect recalling the ardor of the piece that leads the others in battle. The set was designed in collaboration with contemporary artist Patrick Neu, and the prestige version is a numbered and certified limited edition. Each chess set is a sought-after collector’s item as much as a functional game.

The chess pieces are produced at the Cristallerie Saint-Louis in Lorraine, mouth-blown and hand-cut from leaded crystal, with colored pieces achieving their hues through masse coloring. The aluminum board base is precision-engineered to complement the crystal’s brilliance. Established in 1586, Saint-Louis stands as Europe’s oldest crystal manufacturer, holding the title of Royal Cristallerie since 1781.