While browsing through ‘Art of 18^th – beginning of 20^th centuries’ from funds of State Russian Museum of St. Petersburg I came upon painting by Petr Ivanovich Pnin, ‘Game of checkers’, dated 1824. The painting shows three boys and their teacher after the game that ended with victory of one of the boys. The pose and mimic tell the story. It should be noted that boys have portrait like features and were likely students of younger classes of Academy of Arts that Petr Pnin was graduating at the time. I did not find that little fact in my small collection of commentaries to ‘Pnin’. I did find, however, the reference to Ivan Petrovich Pnin – the father of the painter, who was well known writer of the end of 18^th century, friend of Radischev and held anti-serfdom views. I like to think that boy with light brown hair who won the game – the one on the left side of the painting, - is Victor Wind himself.

Regards,

George Shimanovich

PS: Am I the only one to notice that Joe Morgan’s pleas (even post chess retouching) remain, alas, un-answered?