Tatev Monastery Backgammon Set with Ararat Outline

Tatev Monastery Backgammon Set with Ararat Outline by Hrachya Ohanyan

Tatev Monastery on its cliff, carved wall by wall: round tower, battlements, the church with its pointed cap, the rock rippling away beneath, Ararat's peaks above. This is the 60 cm / 23.6″ Armenian wooden backgammon set made by Hrachya Ohanyan. Handmade in beech, with 32 wooden checkers, dice cut from billiard balls and a branded carrying case.

This is the board for the family from Syunik, and anyone who has ridden the cable car across the gorge and not forgotten it. The monastery is carved whole: crenellated curtain walls in cut masonry, a round bastion at the corner, the church behind with its drum and cone, a small belfry, trees inside the walls — and under all of it the cliff, cut into rolling folds filling half the panel. A lobed cartouche with a rope-and-bead border holds it on a lattice lid, the snow peaks above.

Inside, the board is plain by comparison — 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 — and the scrolled edge curls in at the corners. For the wedding in Goris, the pilgrim who walked to the monastery, and the Armenian who keeps the south in his heart.

Specifications

• Size open: 60 × 60 cm / 23.6″ × 23.6″
• Size folded: 60 × 30 cm / 23.6″ × 11.8″
• Material: beech wood, stained honey chestnut and varnished
• Carving: Tatev Monastery in relief — crenellated curtain walls in cut masonry, a round corner bastion, the church with drum and conical cap, a belfry, outbuildings and trees — above a cliff carved in rippling folds, in a lobed cartouche with a rope-and-bead border; diamond lattice across the lid; the two snow-streaked peaks of Ararat along the top edge; eternity whirls on the back
• Outline: Ararat — the twin peaks of Mount Ararat along the top edge, over a scrolled body with curled 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 cliff is the star: half the panel is rock, carved in long rippling folds, so the monastery sits where it really sits — on the edge of nothing.
• A place, not a pattern: walls, towers, church and trees are carved as one landscape, and anyone who has been to Tatev will know it from across the room.
• 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 monastery, its walls and the cliff are carved in relief into the beech, the lattice and the rope border are cut into the same lid, and the peaks are shaped along the top edge. Stain and varnish come last; 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.