Chess, senet and the Egyptian idea of order (opens in new tab)

Chess can be read alongside Egyptian ideas of order, judgement and self-discipline. Beginning with senet and its symbolic links to the afterlife, the text follows the later arrival of shatranj in Islamic Egypt and considers how the chessboard became a useful metaphor for ethics, strategy and human limits. These connections are treated cautiously, avoiding claims of direct continuity where evidence is uncertain. | Image: Painting in tomb of Egyptian queen Nefertari (1295–1255 BCE)