Luxury Pomegranate Braided Cross Backgammon Set with Basket Weave

Luxury Pomegranate Braided Cross Backgammon Set with Basket Weave by Hrachya Ohanyan

The braided cross with its pomegranates and grape clusters, on a lid woven edge to edge in carved basket weave. This is the 60 cm / 23.6″ luxury 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 person who runs a hand over things. The whole lid is weave — flat strands cut over and under, corner to corner, so the surface is never still — and the fruit ring sits in the middle of it: four plaited arms from a faceted star, a smooth pomegranate and a cluster of grapes in each gap, in a scalloped leaf border and a beaded ring. An acanthus leaf holds each corner, a rope border runs the edge, the rim is stepped and moulded.

Turn it over and the weave continues, with an eternity whirl sunk in a round bowl at each side. Open, the game is plain: 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. For the anniversary, the house with the good chairs, and the collector who wanted the fruit board with more to touch.

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
• Carving: braided cross with a faceted star centre, four pomegranates and four grape clusters in relief between the plaited arms, in a scalloped leaf border and beaded ring on a stippled ground; basket weave across the whole lid; acanthus corner leaves; rope border; eternity whirls in round bowls on the back
• Outline: Classic — a square frame with a stepped, 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

• Texture edge to edge: nothing on the closed board is flat — weave, plaits, fruit, leaves — so it reads by touch as much as by eye.
• Two Armenian symbols, one board: the pomegranate on the front, the eternity whirl twice on the back, both carved into the same beech.
• 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 carving real? Yes. The basket weave is cut strand by strand into the beech, the cross, the fruit and the corner leaves are carved in relief, and the whirls on the back are carved into their bowls. Stain and varnish come last; nothing is printed, pressed 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.