Lavash Baker Backgammon Set with Classic Outline

Lavash Baker Backgammon Set with Classic Outline by Hrachya Ohanyan

A woman in red kneels at the tonir, stretching a sheet of lavash over her cushion — painted, not carved, inside a carved rope ring. This is the 60 cm / 23.6″ Armenian wooden backgammon set made by Hrachya Ohanyan, classic outline. Handmade in beech, with 32 wooden checkers, dice cut from billiard balls and a branded carrying case.

This is the board for the family that grew up on the smell of fresh lavash. The picture is a real painting under a clear gloss, brushwork and all: the baker in her white headscarf and red dress, the dough stretched long and pale over the cushion, the tonir open and orange at her knee, a stone arch and an oil lamp behind, a round tray of finished bread on the wall. Around it the lid is carved — a rope-and-bead ring, diamond lattice in cusped panels, a rope border.

Open it and the picture gives way to a plain carved game: fleur-de-lys-tipped points in pale and dark wood, a wheel ornament in a scrolled ring on each half, an ornate bronze hinge on the bar, eternity whirls on the back. For the diaspora kitchen, the grandmother who baked, and the friend who has eaten at your table and asked what the bread was called.

Specifications

• Size open: 60 × 60 cm / 23.6″ × 23.6″
• Size folded: 60 × 30 cm / 23.6″ × 11.8″
• Material: beech wood, stained chestnut and varnished; painted scene under clear gloss
• Carving: painted lavash-baking scene in a rope-and-bead ring, sealed under clear gloss; diamond lattice with cusped panels; rope border; eternity whirls on the back
• Outline: Classic — a square frame with a moulded rim
• Hardware: cast-bronze hinges and clasps
• Craftsmanship: entirely handmade by Hrachya Ohanyan

What's Included

• Hand-carved backgammon board
• 32 beech and walnut checkers with velvet bases
• Dice set cut from billiard balls
• Branded carrying case

Why You'll Love It

• A picture, not a pattern: a painted scene set into a carved lid — the tonir, the bread, the baker — the kind of thing a guest walks over to look at.
• Carving around it: the lattice, the rope ring and the border are cut into the beech, so the painting sits in a frame that is itself the work.
• Make it theirs: add a name or a date at checkout to mark a birthday, a retirement or years of games together.

Good to Know Before You Buy

Is the picture painted or printed? Painted. The scene is a painting with visible brushwork, sealed under a clear gloss; the rope ring, the lattice and the border around it are carved into the beech, and the stain and varnish go on last. Nothing is printed.

What about shipping and returns? Shipping is free to the US, Canada and Europe, always tracked; other countries pay a flat $100 (Brazil, Chile and New Zealand $200). Every set is covered by our 30-day returns policy.

How do I look after it? Keep it out of direct sunlight and away from radiators. Wipe with a dry, soft cloth and store it closed in its carrying case.

About the Artist - Hrachya Ohanyan

National Master Hrachya Ohanyan began his fine woodcraft in 1985 and founded his workshop in Yerevan in 2010. This board belongs to his collection of wooden backgammon sets, each one made by hand by the craftspeople of that workshop. Read Hrachya Ohanyan's story or explore the full backgammon collection.

Also known as nardi (нарды), nardy, tavla or shesh besh.