Armenian Backgammon Set Hand Carved - Mount Ararat and Wheat Ear

Armenian Backgammon Set Hand Carved - Mount Ararat and Wheat Ear, by Hrachya Ohanyan

A single wheat ear stands in front of Mount Ararat on this Armenian backgammon set, a stone road winding toward the peaks and the morning sun fanning out behind them. Deep relief on a 23.6″ / 60 cm chestnut-stained beech board by Hrachya Ohanyan; checkers, dice and case included.

The twin peaks rise inside a rope-and-bead ring, snow caps in bare wood against a sky punched point by point; the road of carved stones, the sun rays across the plain and the wheat ear in the foreground are all cut in deep relief — the mountain, the road home and the harvest on one lid. The scene sits between two cusped stippled panels on a carved diamond lattice in the classic square outline; two eternity whirls turn on the back cover. Inside, each half carries a wheel ornament in a scrolled ring, points in pale and dark wood tipped with fleur-de-lys, and an ornate bronze hinge. The board for the Sunday table, and for the son abroad who still measures every mountain against this one. Also known as nardi (нарды), nardy, tavla or shesh besh.

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
• Motif: Mount Ararat with a stone road, sun rays and a wheat ear in deep relief inside a rope-and-bead ring, on a carved lattice; two eternity whirls on the back
• Outline: Classic — the square frame with a moulded rim
• 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

• Ararat as a landscape, not a badge: road, wheat and sun rays around the peaks — a whole scene cut into the wood by hand in the Hrachya Ohanyan workshop, and no two boards the same.
• Carved on both sides: the scene and lattice in front, two eternity whirls on the back — finished all the way round, not just where it shows.
• Make it theirs: add a name or a date at checkout and it becomes a personalized backgammon set.

Good to Know Before You Buy

Is the carving real? Yes. The peaks, the road, the wheat ear and the sun rays are cut into the beech by hand in deep relief; the sky is stippled point by point and the lattice carved line by line. Nothing is printed. The colour is a stain in the wood under the varnish.

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.

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.

Masis and Sis

Armenians call the two peaks Masis and Sis — the big one and the little one — and the mountain stands just across the border, in sight of half the country and out of reach of all of it. That is why it is carved with a road: the road is the wish. The wheat ear is the plain at its feet, the Ararat valley that feeds Yerevan. Mountain, road, harvest — all three in one ring.

About the Artist - Hrachya Ohanyan

National Master Hrachya Ohanyan began his fine wood craft in 1985 and founded his workshop in Yerevan in 2010. Every board passes through 14 stages of production and 14 pairs of hands before it is finished. Read the story of master Hrachya Ohanyan or explore the full Hrachya Ohanyan backgammon collection.

A Gift That Lasts

A father's sixtieth, a wedding in the diaspora, the first Christmas in a new country — this is the board that goes in the suitcase and comes out at the table.