Abstract Ivory Knight, Louvre

A knight from Egypt or Iraq, carved between the 8th and 10th centuries and now in the Louvre, shown beside two small dice. There is no horse here in any literal sense: just a rounded ivory block with a short projecting head, decorated with stamped circles. Islamic chess turned abstract early, and once you know this style you will spot the same idea in later sets on this list. A player can still read the piece at a glance, which was the point.