chess-The Oxford Companion to Chess - First Edition by David Hooper & Kenneth Whyld

292 SAINT GEORGE CHESSMEN
his career as a master. Having retired to Algeria in
1861, hc dicd lhcre alter a fall lron bis cariage.
SAINT GEORGE CIIESSMEN, tbe srandard pat
rern of chessmen in Britain unlil supeseded by
in the 1850s. Thc Sainl
George chesnen were relatively cheap to make.
loi all corld be iurned on a lalhe hut it w:s n.t
always obvious which piccc sas shich. TIe 6ore
expensive sets had a caned hoBe\ head on thc
knight. Theselssere madeinFrancealongsidethe
Rtgedce p.ttem which was the srandard set used
ST PETERSBIIRC VARTATION.376 in thc
so called on accou.t of its
successlul useby r.As(.R acainsl RUBrNsltN at the
St Pet€Bbu.g toumamenr 1914r bul tbe variarion
was knoRn long belore, halinB occurred, ior
exanple, in the gane B. Flcissig-Mackenzie.
vic.na tomrament 1882.
SALVIO, ALESSANDRO (..157tL{.1610),
Neapohan aulhor and doctorollaN whowas onc
of thelcadineplayemandperhapsthebestanalysl
olhistime Salvio loundedachessclubinNaples. a
cenfie otlialian chess, an academy'iorthe study
olthc eame and the dhseminalion of its practi.e. In
160,1 he published Trouato dell'inventione et arte
liberole lelioco di scutchi, a greal improledenl
on GrANUrro s book wrirten selen yea6 earlier and
the first comp.ehensive Nork lo reveal the
advances nade by tbe gre.t lt.lian players oi the
late 16tb century since rhe dme otr.6p.z Most oI
Salvio s openings scrc previouslt known lo tbese
playerc. some of whom be nel and played- but
some linesin tbeKNGs GAMBrrnayhave been hh
OWN. (SCC TROM DEENCEiPHN IDORCAMBITiROSLN.
rsAL vARrArroN i and sroc(wHF l^RhnoN ) For 13
ycars until cARRLs Nrore his book salvio\ work
held the field as rhe only authorilati,c and
Apparenlly he had a jealous temperament and
a. innexible mind tbat brooked no ontradiction.
*rx
lwo venions olthe sailt George set. (r .o r )pawn, rcok, knight, bishop. 'tueen.
king