Armenian Backgammon Set Hand Carved - Khor Virap Monastery, Ararat Outline

Armenian Backgammon Set Hand Carved - Khor Virap Monastery, Ararat Outline, by Hrachya Ohanyan

The monastery in the wood, and the mountain as the board. Along the top edge of this lid the twin peaks of Ararat rise in carved relief, their summits left in the bare pale beech; below them, inside a lobed cartouche ringed with rope, master Hrachya Ohanyan cut Khor Virap in deep relief — the church with its conical dome and belfry, the long crenellated wall, and the whole rocky hillside falling away in bold gouged strokes, as if the plain were still settling under it. Around the scene runs a carved diamond lattice inside a rope-and-bead border, the corners scroll outward, and the beech is stained a warm honey brown under clear varnish. A handmade Armenian backgammon set hand-carved from a single piece of wood at the full 23.6″ / 60 cm.

Undo the cast-bronze clasps and the 23.6″ / 60 cm hand-carved wooden backgammon board opens on a wheel ornament in a scrolled ring at the heart of each half, points in pale and dark wood tipped with fleur-de-lys, a carved scalloped frame round the field and an ornate hinge on the centre bar. Turn it over and the back cover carries two eternity whirls in deep relief inside lattice panels. Thirty-two checkers in light and dark wood, a dice set and the branded carrying case come with it. This is the handmade backgammon board for the living room with the mountain on the wall — and the one that wants the mountain on the table too.

Specifications

• Size open: 60 × 60 cm / 23.6″ × 23.6″
• Size folded: 60 × 30 cm / 23.6″ × 11.8″
• Material: beech wood, carved from one piece, stained honey brown and varnished; the Ararat summits left in bare pale wood
• Motif: Khor Virap monastery — church, belfry and crenellated wall — on its rocky hill, hand-carved in deep relief inside a lobed rope-ringed cartouche; the peaks of Ararat in textured relief along the top edge; carved diamond lattice field with rope-and-bead border; two eternity whirls in deep relief on the back cover; wheel ornaments and fleur-de-lys points inside
• Outline: Mount Ararat — the twin peaks carved in relief along the top, with scrolled corners
• Hardware: cast-bronze hinges and clasps
• Handmade in Armenia by Hrachya Ohanyan

What's Included

• Backgammon board with bronze hinges and clasps
• 32 checkers made from beech and walnut wood, with velvet bases
• Dice set
• Branded carrying case

Why You'll Love It

• Monastery and mountain, both carved: Khor Virap stands up out of the beech in deep relief, and the Ararat outline is not a picture of the peaks but the shape of the lid itself — closed, the board stands on its edge with the pale summits up.
• Carved on both covers: the monastery on the front, two eternity whirls in lattice on the back — there is no plain side to this board.
• Ready for the table: full-size 23.6″ / 60 cm board, checkers in light and dark wood, dice and a carrying case — open it and play.

Good to Know Before You Buy

How big is it? Open, the board is 23.6″ / 60 cm square — the standard full size for a living-room table. Closed, it is 23.6″ × 11.8″ / 60 × 30 cm and stands on its own edge, peaks up.

Is the carving real? Yes — all of it. The monastery, the wall and the hillside are cut into the beech by hand in deep relief inside the carved cartouche; the peaks of Ararat along the top, the lattice field, the rope-and-bead border, the eternity whirls on the back and the frame inside are carved the same way. Nothing is printed or pressed. The honey colour is a stain in the wood under the varnish, and the pale summits are the bare beech left unstained.

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.

Can I add a name or a date? Yes — choose the engraving option on this page and tell us the text. A name or a date turns it into a personalized backgammon set, and it is the detail people remember years later.

How do I look after it? Keep it out of direct sun and away from radiators, wipe with a dry soft cloth, and store it closed in the case.

The Ladder and the Mountain

Everyone who visits Khor Virap does the same two things: climbs down the iron ladder into the pit where Gregory the Illuminator spent thirteen years, and climbs back up to stand on the wall and look at Ararat. The pit is where Armenia's conversion began, in 301 — the first country to take Christianity as its faith; the wall is where the mountain fills the whole sky, a few fields beyond the border. The Hrachya Ohanyan workshop carved the monastery into the lid and cut the lid itself into the shape of the mountain, so the board holds both halves of the visit — the story underground and the view above it.

About the Artist - Hrachya Ohanyan

In 1985, National Master Hrachya Ohanyan began his fine wood craft, introducing a new approach to the age-old traditions of woodworking. After many years of dedication, the Hrachya Ohanyan workshop was established in 2010. Every board passes through 14 stages of production, with 14 separate craftsmen leaving their mark before it reaches its finished form — a piece of wood artistry admired both in Armenia and around the world. Read the story of master Hrachya Ohanyan or explore the full Hrachya Ohanyan backgammon collection.

A Gift That Lasts Generations

For a christening, a golden wedding, a father who keeps a photograph of Ararat on his desk or the friend who has just come back from the pilgrimage, an Armenian backgammon set with Khor Virap carved in relief on a board shaped like the mountain is the backgammon gift set that holds the whole visit. We send it at Christmas, on 21 September and on Father's Day. It gets opened, played and passed on.