Chess is an element of a board-based logical game that combines elements of art, science and sport. There are many theories explaining its spread worldwide. According to the most widely accepted theory, the Chaturanga first known ancestor of the game appeared in India no later than the 6th century AD.

Chess pieces were found during excavations in the Svetloyarsky District of the Volgograd region (Tinguta railway station) led by Andrey Vitalievich Tsybriy in 2016. One of the found pieces, likely a pawn, is in the shape of a cylinder with an oval base.

The second piece, likely a bishop, is shaped like a cone with an evenly cut base and it dates back to the 14th century. It was found at the Vodyansky settlement in the Dubrovsky district of the Volgograd region by an expedition led by Evgeniy Pavlovich Myskov in 2004.