Garni Temple Walnut Backgammon Set with Basket Weave

Garni Temple Walnut Backgammon Set with Basket Weave by Hrachya Ohanyan

Garni's colonnade standing up from a smooth walnut disc — pediment, fluted columns, stepped podium and fanning flagstones — with the name lettered beneath in Armenian. This is the 60 cm / 23.6″ Armenian wooden backgammon set made by Hrachya Ohanyan, classic outline. Handmade in walnut, with 32 checkers, dice cut from billiard balls and a branded case.

This is the board for the family that drives out to Garni on a Sunday, the Yerevan flat with the gorge photograph, and the player who wants the temple in real walnut. The building is cut from its corner so front and side both show: the pediment with its blocks, each column fluted, the podium's stepped courses, the paving fanning out below, on a disc left smooth so the temple is the only thing on it. Either side, basket weave in an ogee-arched panel; beyond, diamond lattice to the rim.

Inside, the points are cut in line work with a cross-hatched fill and fleur-de-lys tips under a row of little arches, a petal wheel sits in a scrolled ring on each half, and an ornate cast hinge holds the bar. For the Garni wedding, the architect's office, and the player who wants the country's only standing pagan temple on the table.

Specifications

• Size open: 60 × 60 cm / 23.6″ × 23.6″
• Size folded: 60 × 30 cm / 23.6″ × 11.8″
• Material: walnut wood, natural colour, varnished
• Carving: the temple of Garni — pediment, fluted columns, stepped podium and flagged forecourt — in relief on a smooth disc inside a rope-and-bead ring, its name lettered beneath in Armenian; basket weave carved strand over strand in ogee-arched panels either side; chip-carved diamond lattice on the outer fields; rope-and-bead borders; petal wheels in scrolled rings and cross-hatched points in line work inside
• Outline: Classic — straight edges and square corners
• 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

• The temple, not a badge: columns, pediment and podium are carved as a building seen from its corner, on a smooth disc that leaves it room to stand.
• Three textures on one lid: the smooth disc, the basket weave cut strand over strand either side, and the chip-carved lattice beyond — the eye goes to the temple and the hand finds the rest.
• 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

Which temple is this? The Hellenistic temple of Garni, east of Yerevan above the Azat gorge — built in the first century AD, the only standing pagan temple in Armenia, and put back up from its fallen stones in the 1970s. Here it is carved in relief into natural walnut on a smooth disc, with its name lettered beneath in Armenian, and the board is varnished. Nothing is printed or applied.

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.