thechesslibrary.com Blog

As indicated in recent postings, I am working on adding info to a collection of Prize Winning Games from tournaments from 1876-1929. The collection was originally published in Shakhmatny Bjulleten three issues in 1968. The articles were collected by Nikolay Minev, who added some additional games.

I am seeking the assistance of readers who may be able to provide additional detail, specifically the type of prize that the games received (e.g. Best Game, Best Combination, Best Endgame, 1st Brilliancy Prize, etc - whatever may have been given at the particular tournament). So if any readers have access to the original tournament bulletins (or perhaps other sources) where this information may be found, please email me at admin@thechesslibrary.com with whatever details you can find.

The list of tournaments currently represented in the games collection is:
Philadelphia 1876
London 1886
Frankfurt 1887
Amsterdam 1889
New York 1889
Manchester 1890
Paris 1892
Hastings 1895
Vienna 1896
Nuremberg 1896
Berlin 1897
Vienna 1898
London 1899
Paris 1900
Monte Carlo 1901
Monte Carlo 1902
Hannover 1902
Vienna 1902
Monte Carlo 1903
Vienna 1903
Cambridge Springs 1904
Coburg 1904
Barmen 1905
Ostend 1905
Ostend 1906
Nuremberg 1906
Vienna 1907
Ostend 1907
Carlsbad 1907
“Vienna” 1908
Prague 1908
St. Petersburg 1909
Hamburg 1910
San Sebastian 1911
Carlsbad 1911
Abbazia 1912
Pistyan 1912
Havana 1913
Baden bei Wien 1914
St. Petersburg 1914
Vienna 1914
New York 1916
New York 1918
Berlin 1920
Vienna 1920
Budapest 1921
Pistyan 1922
London 1922
Teplitz-Schonau 1922
Vienna 1922
Vienna 1923
Carlsbad 1923
Maerisch Ostrau 1923
New York 1924
Berlin 1924
Marienbad 1925
Baden Baden 1925
Moscow 1925
Munich 1926
Semmering 1926
Dresden 1926
Berlin 1926
Kecskemet 1927
New York 1927
London 1927
Kissingen 1928
Berlin 1928
Carlsbad 1929
Budapest 1929

I’m happy to report that I am now able to answer a couple of the questions listed in my last posting! I found the additional issues of Shakhmatny Bjulleten that I somehow missed in my earlier search. So I will very soon be cross-checking the games against the file I posted and updating the source info (including both identification of the games Minev added, as well as the volume, issue and page from SB where the games were originally published).

That will take care of questions 1 and 2. The question to remain (and that I still need help with from someone in possession of the original tournament books) will be #3: what prize did each game receive. I will post the list of tournaments here in the next posting, and would appreciate any help anyone can provide.

In addition to a new Minev article in the on-going “Mini-Lessons” series, I just posted a new My Chess Viewer file of Prize Winning Games: 1876 - 1927. This is a file I received from Dr. Minev. He indicated that this originally appeared in Shakhmatny Bjulleten in a series of at least 2 - and possibly 3 - articles over the course of several months. The games themselves were compiled by the original author from tournament books from the period, and represent games that received some prize at the indicated tournaments. To this original list from S.B., Nikolay also added a few more that he found from the same time period.

These are the cream of the crop! I think you will enjoy playing through them.

I have posted them in their current state, but the background raises some additional questions. If any readers are able to help answer the mysteries, I would appreciate the help. The questions:
1. What issues of the magazine were they published in? I found one, probably the first. It was 1/1968, pages 14-19. But this accounts for only about 30 of the more than 90 games. What issue contained the others? I have searched page by page for several years after (and before) and have yet to find the answer.
2. What games did Nikolay add? He indicated it was probably 5-6 games. If I can find the articles (question 1), then this question can also be answered.
3. Most interesting - what prizes were the games awarded? Nikolay indicated that the prize varied - some were the best game of the tournament, some may have been something else, such as best ending, best combination, etc. If anyone has access to the original tournament books, there is a chance that the prize is listed. I would like to identify all if possible, but will need help.