Chess reached Europe from India via Persia — the game we call chess is Chaturanga, invented in India in the 6th century CE. The Sanskrit word means 'four divisions' — infantry, cavalry, elephants, chariots — which became pawn, knight, bishop, rook. Persia adopted it as Shatranj; Arab conquerors carried it to Spain and Italy; Europe refined it to modern form. India, Iran, and Turkey all preserve traditional chess-piece carving crafts — sandalwood, sadeli marquetry, bone.
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