Pomegranate Tree Backgammon Set with Classic Outline, Medium

Pomegranate Tree Backgammon Set with Classic Outline, Medium by Hrachya Ohanyan

A pomegranate tree in the pale of the beech — trunk, curling branches, leaves and round fruit — on a dark ground in a rope-and-bead ring. This is the 50 cm / 19.6″ 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 flat where the big one would take the whole table — the same carving, a size down. The tree is a two-tone picture rather than a relief: the trunk forks into branches that curl back on themselves, each tipped with a leaf and a small pomegranate, all left cream against the stained ground so it reads from across the room. Round the ring the fields are cut into fine honeycomb stipple with cusped edges, and diamond lattice fills the corners.

Open, it plays like the big boards: pale and dark points with fleur-de-lys tips, a wheel ornament in a scrolled ring on each half, an ornate bronze hinge on the bar, eternity whirls on the back cover. For the Armenian kitchen table, the newlyweds' first flat, and the grandmother who still wins.

Specifications

• Size open: 50 × 50 cm / 19.6″ × 19.6″
• Size folded: 50 × 25 cm / 19.6″ × 9.8″
• Material: beech wood, stained warm brown and varnished, the tree left pale
• Carving: pomegranate tree with a forked trunk, curling branches, leaves and round fruit, left pale on a dark-stained ground inside a rope-and-bead ring; honeycomb-stippled fields with cusped edges; diamond lattice corners; rope borders; 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

• Fruit you can count: every branch ends in a leaf and a pomegranate, so the tree reads as a real tree hung with fruit, not a stylised sign.
• Fits the table: a size down from the big boards, it leaves room for the coffee cups and still has the full carved lid — cusped panels, lattice, rope borders.
• 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 tree carved? Not in relief — the tree is the bare pale beech showing inside a ground that has been stained dark, so it is smooth to the touch and there is nothing to chip. Everything round it is carved: the rope-and-bead ring, the honeycomb panels, the lattice and the borders. Varnish goes on over the lot; nothing is printed or stuck on.

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.