Bauern, Handwerker und Bürger im Schachzabelbuch. Mittelalterliche Ständegliederung nach Jacobus de Cessolis

This work serves as a scholarly analysis of the medieval social hierarchy as represented in the 'Liber de moribus hominum et officiis nobilium ac popularium super ludo scachorum,' written by the Dominican monk Jacobus de Cessolis around 1300. Karl-Sigismund Kramer investigates how the popular medieval game of chess was utilized in the original text as a moral allegory to mirror the structure of fourteenth-century society, categorizing individuals from nobility to common laborers and artisans.

Published by Deutscher Kunstverlag in 1995, this volume contextualizes the historical significance of the chess-book genre. Kramer’s research focuses on the intersection of iconographic tradition and social history, examining how the game pieces were intended to educate readers on their specific roles and duties within the feudal order. The book is widely regarded by historians for its careful examination of how medieval writers synthesized game theory with contemporary ethics and class divisions.