Well known chess timer from somewhere in the 1990’s, as a price for a Dutch chess tournament (see metal tag on top) for the Amsterdam based SGA-tournament. It is still marked GDR on the dial bottom for the country of East Germany (1949- 1990), so a piece of history on its own. The Ruhla Company is know for it’s basic but quality movements for clock as well as wrist watches until they had to stop in 1991. These clocks are again being produced today by the restarted company. It is a fully mechanical piece, so you have to wind both clocks and set them to zero by hand. By pressing the buttons on top, you can measure the “thinking” time during a game. The case is made of lacquered wood and glass with only small signs of use. This chess clock measures ca. 22 cm or 8 3/4 inches wide. Ready to be used again. Check out the YouTube video below on some vintage chess!
If you like the games of chess checkers and backgammon, do read the article Bar games that we used to play: Checkers or Draughts or check the video below from youtube for some vintage chess film footage. A good website on backgammon you can find here.
