Some collectors start with a pendant. Others start with a chessboard. At KIZIMA® our games collection brings together four classic pastimes — chess, checkers, backgammon, and dominoes — with every piece hand-carved from genuine Baltic amber in our Brooklyn workshop. These are not decorative stand-ins for the real thing; they are playable sets built to be handled, displayed, and eventually passed down.
A Collection Built Around Four Classic Games
Each set in the collection follows the same principle: real Baltic amber, cut and polished by hand, shaped into a game meant to actually be played. Because amber is a natural material and every piece is cut individually, no two sets look quite alike — the honey, cognac, and tea tones shift slightly from stone to stone, which is part of what makes a handmade set different from a mass-produced one.
Chess for the Collector's Shelf
The chess pieces range from clean, minimalist forms — like our Luxury Baltic Amber Chess Pieces and the Baltic Amber Chess Pieces Executive Gift set — to more elaborate work, such as the Exclusive Baltic Amber Chess Set with an inlaid board, and the Teutonic Knights Baltic Amber Chess Set, where the pieces are carved in a Gothic style with a matching board. Each set is sized and weighted to play a full game, not just sit on a shelf, though most owners tell us they end up doing both.
Checkers, Backgammon, and Dominoes
The same craftsmanship carries through the rest of the collection. The Baltic Amber Backgammon & Checkers Pieces set pairs amber checkers with backgammon-ready chips. The Baltic Amber Checkers, Cats & Mice set takes a more playful approach, with pieces carved in the shape of the two animals. And the Baltic Amber Domino Set, Double-6, brings the same standard of hand-finishing to a game that's usually made from plastic or bone — each tile cut, sanded, and polished individually.
Games Worth Keeping
What ties the collection together is durability. Baltic amber is tens of millions of years old, and a well-made set from it will outlast the games it's used to play. For a collector, that's the appeal: an object with a use, a history, and a reason to stay in the family.
See the full games collection, along with the rest of our handmade Baltic amber pieces, at kizima.us.
