Puzzle Ball Turning Tools

If artisans want to make round or cylindrically-based pieces, they can turn them from raw material held firmly and spun between two fixed endpoints in a machine called a lathe. A sharp chisel is used to shape the material as it spins. The complex Manchu Dynasty Style Chinese Puzzleball Set of the 1800s, with its hollow, loose, lace-thin, concentric spheres turned inside each other from one solid ivory ball exemplifies the epitome of lathe turning prowess.

These tools were loaned to the World Chess Hall of Fame courtesy of Craft Supplies USA.