composed of ivory, designed as a backgammon board on one side, with ebony and light wood alternating points and geometric stellar motifs in centre, the other side designed as a chess board 

In good condition, some hairline cracks in the ivory, has been recently cleaned, some warping to wood and ivory due to climate, as a result - the board slightly bending and the centre, where two ivory sections joined, have slightly come loose, the similar phenomenon occurred to border, which had traces of old glue, would need to be stored in a climate-controlled environment, as viewed.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Chess, originally from India, was introduced into Al-Andalus in the ninth century via Persia. It quickly became one of the most popular games played at court and spread into the Christian Kingdoms. The emir Muhammad I of Córdoba (r. 852-886) is known to have been an avid player, and the Libro de los Juegos (The Book of Games), a manuscript commissioned in 1283 by Alfonso X now in the Biblioteca de El Escorial, depicts many scenes representing the game, also between Christians and Muslims, who are known to have used chess to resolve important issues. It is said that the game between the poet Ben Ammar and Alfonso VI of León and Castile (r. 1077–1109) led to his abandonment of the campaign to Sevilla (Higuera 1994, pp.138-9).

The ivory would have been imported from Fatimid Egypt, and a beautiful chessboard from Egypt, dated to the fourteenth/fifteenth century, now in the Benaki Museum, Athens, inv. no. 10033, displays the use of ivory and wood in a complex decorative design. The technique of micro-mosaic work, inherited from the Umayyads and used throughout North Africa and Spain, survived the Christian Reconquista of Al-Andalus and played an influential part in the decoration of Renaissance furniture in Spain and Italy, following a pattern of dissemination not dissimilar to the spread of lustre pottery. For an example of a gaming board of similar style, but produced in Italy, circa 1500, see Holländer 2005, p.89, no.58.

Comparable games boards, but designed as hinged boxes, mainly comprised of wood with inlays of ivory and other materials, are in the Museo de la Alhambra, Granada (inv. no. 3968, illustrated in Granada 1995, pp.42708, no.181), Victoria and Albert Museum, London, inv. no. 154-1900, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, inv. no.168 (see von Seipel 1998, cat. no.24). A similar example sold in these rooms, 24 October 2007, lot 158.

This lot is accompanied by a radiocarbon dating report confirming a date of manufacture between 1307 and 1363 AD.