Sourcing a Classic Game

Ten years ago I was studying a game that appears in Rashid Ziyatdinov, GM-RAM: Essential Grandmaster Knowledge (2000) and posted "Understanding Mayet's Thinking". Four years later, I found some discrepancies concerning its provenance while studying this game again. Ziyatdinov lists the game as Berlin 1851. In a video made in 2017, Kingscrusher has the game as Berlin 1859. In 2014, I checked David Levy and Kevin O'Connell, Oxford Encyclopedia of Chess Games, vol 1 1485-1866 (1981). Levy and O'Connell's book is an impressive work of scholarship. In the days before databases, it offered a greater selection of historic games than any other single book. The authors also source every game.

Unfortunately, checking Levy and O'Connell's source for Mayet -- Anderssen's miniature complicated matters. They have the game as Berlin 1859, but their source, Leopold Hoffer, and Johannes Zukertort, eds. The Chess-Monthly (1882) has London 1851, played "during the London International Chess Tournament" (212). I noted this contradiction in a comment on chessgames.com. The Chess-Monthly (March 1882) presents a game played in Jackson, Mississippi, which they reproduce from the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, and appends Mayet -- Anderssen as a note to that game (211-212).

The Chess-Monthly

The Chess-Monthly omits a piece of information that can be found in the Globe-Democrat's account of the game: it was played at odds of rook plus move. Chess Archaeology's Jack O'Keefe Project has digital images of most of the chess columns from the St Louis Globe-Democrat. This image is from 15 January 1882, and was the source for the game that appeared in The Chess-Monthly.

The game:

Hunter,Rev. Dr. -- Galbreath,John A.
Jackson, Miss. c.1882
[Mackenzie, George H.]

Remove the rook from a8.

1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.d3 b5 4.Bb3 a5 5.a3 Bc5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.c4 bxc4 8.Bxc4 d6 9.0-0 Bg4 10.h3 h5 11.hxg4

With this capture White's troubles begin.

11...hxg4 12.Nh2 g3 13.Ng4 Nd4

The commencement of a highly ingenious combination, which the Reverend Doctor may be pardoned for having failed to see through.

14.Be3 Nxg4

White to move

Up until this point, White had a winning position, but here he blundered.

15.Qxg4?? Ne2+

The termination is exceedingly piquant and interesting.

16.Qxe2 Rh1+ 17.Kxh1 Qh4+ and mates next move 0-1

On Monday this week, I won a miniature using the fishing pole trap, and that brought me back to The Chess-Monthly, Mayet -- Anderssen, and for the first time this interesting game in the Globe-Democrat. That led to a renewed search for the provenance of Mayet -- Anderssen. In turns out, the original publication of the game had been identified at chessgames.com two years ago. The game was published in Schachzeitung in February 1851, a Berlin magazine for which Adolf Anderssen served as one of the editors. Staunton's London 1851 tournament began in late April. Once again, Chess Archaeology had a link to Schachzeitung at GoogleBooks, actually two links--one at the Bavaria State Library and one at the Austrian National Library.

The game:

Mayet,C. -- Anderssen,A. [C64]
Berlin, 1851

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.Bxc6

As I noted ten years ago, this move is inconsistent with 4.c3.

5...dxc6 6.0-0 Bg4 7.h3 h5

Putting a fishing pole out to see if Mayet might bite.

8.hxg4 hxg4 9.Nxe5

Black to move

9...g3

9...Nxe4 and Black is winning. The lines are instructive, and at the end of the best sequence for both, I am able to beat Stockfish on my iPad with Black's second best move (engine assessed), but not with the best.

10.d4 Nxe4

White to move

11.Qg4

Hoffer and Zukertort offer two alternatives:

11.Nf3 gxf2+ 12.Rxf2 Rh1+ 13.Kxh1 Nxf2+ 14.Kg1 Nxd1; 

11.fxg3 Nxg3 12.Re1 Rh1+ 13.Kf2 Qh4 14.Rxh1 Nxh1+ 15.Kg1 Bd6 16.Be3 (16.Nf3 Qf2+ 17.Kxh1 0-0-0) 

11...Bxd4

The greatest representation of dash and brilliancy is not satisfied with the gain of a hostile Queen by 11...gxf2+, etc. (Hoffer and Zukertort)

12.Qxe4

12.Be3 gxf2+ 13.Bxf2 (13.Rxf2 Bxe3) 13...Bxf2+ 14.Rxf2 Rh1+; 

12.Nd3 Rh4 13.Bg5 Rxg4 14.Bxd8 Bxf2+ 15.Nxf2 gxf2+ 16.Rxf2 Nxf2 (Hoffer and Zukertort)

12...Bxf2+ 0-1

In Schachzeitung (Berlin, February 1851), the sole annotation follows this move: "Schwarz kunigt ein erzwungenes Matt in funf Zugan an" (Black announces a forced mate in five moves).

This morning I copied eight games from the February 1851 issue of Schachzeitung into a database. All of them are in ChessBase Mega 2020. However, the versions in CB extend the games to checkmate where that did not occur in Schachzeitung, and in one case the players' colors are reversed.

In a different Mayet -- Anderssen battle, Anderssen let a win slip away from this position.

Black to move

What would you play? Probably the move suggested in the notes to the game.