Go stones
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The pieces used to mark the moves on the go board are known as stones. They are made from quite a variety of materials. Traditionally they are black and white, but any two colours can be used as long as they are easily distinguishable.
Japanese and Korean stones are biconvex, lens shaped. Chinese stones are flat on one side. For both shapes, the most common material for moderately priced stones today is glass.
Traditional Japanese stones are made of slate (black) and shell (white). Traditional Chinese stones are sintered (powdered and then melted together) jade (black) and sintered quartz (white).
There are also plastic stones; these are cheap but usually neither look good nor feel right in the hand. Ing stones, common in Taiwan, are plastic with a metal center. Historically, in Asian countries, materials such as bone or wood have also been used.
In old times, when go boards were decorated, stones could be made from gems or other material. Jade stones were commonly used in China's upper classes and are still used in some Chinese tournament games (e.g. Sonoda Yuichi versus Zhang Wendong, 1989).
Go stones made from semiprecious stone are available from Algorithmic Artisan. See this
review.
In China, especially near Jingdezhen, ceramic stones are available. While I prefer the pricier glass ones for their sound and heft, the ceramic ones actually look a little nicer. -- Michael Richter)
A source for ceramic and marble stones is Go gamestore,
Go-Figure! and
Yellow Mountain Imports.
Agate stones: http://goama.upstream.ru/gallery/albums/style_weiqi/normal_go5.jpg
http://goama.upstream.ru/gallery/albums/style_weiqi/normal_go4.jpg
Japanese Stones 碁石
Should you want to buy shell and slate stones, be prepared to pay for them. The slate is (relatively) easily found, but the shell is (very) expensive. Shell stones are also judged to be 'better' (and more expensive) if there is a large number of visible lines on them, especially if the lines are straight.
Shell stones are often identified by "grade" (印). For stones made from shell harvested off the coast of Japan the grades are: Flower (Hana 花), Moon (Tsuki 月) and Snow (Yuki 雪), from lowest to highest. Snow grade are the whitest stones with the finest pattern (and thus the most expensive). Moon and flower or "standard" grade have broader lines and slight discoloration. For stones made from clams harvested off the coast of Baja California (Mexico) the grades are Standard (Jitsuyo 実用), Moon, and Snow. Japanese clam stones are several times the price of stones made from Mexican clams.
The price of shell stones also varies considerably depending on thickness. Thickness is expressed in units of 号, a traditional Japanese measure of distance. 30号 is 8.0mm and 35号 is 9.8mm. It is quite difficult to find shells large enough to give stones 10 mm and above.
For more information, see http://www.kurokigoishi.co.jp/online_shop/english/go/goishi.html.
clam shell
UPDATE REQUESTED
If anyone has any information regarding the conservation status of the clams used for go stones, or whether those clams harvested for such purposes are also used as food, please post that information here in addition to citing your source if possible. Thank you. Related discussion on GoDiscussions
Chinese stones, Yunzi 云子
Go/Weiqi stones from Yunnan, a province in the Southwest of China, called Yunzi (云子)
Additional material here moved to Yunzi page.
Ing stones
Ing stones are plastic with a metal center.
For details, see the Ing stones page.
Make your own stones...
Ender: Does anyone know of a walkthrough somewhere or have an idea of how to make your own stones from the slate and clam raw materials? I would imagine that it would be much less expensive than buyin them pre crafted...
jshriver I'd also like to know. If you can email me a link, or book title. jshriver <at> gmail.com
Malweth: This seems like a daunting task! One or two stones might be possible, but unless you have some previous stoneworking (and shellcrafting) ability, this will likely cost much more than buying them... simply because (as a beginner) one's bound to use about 10 times the materials.
C.S.Graves: Not to mention the time it would take to craft a full set. It's probably more worth your while to shell out (heh heh) the money for a set made by experienced craftsmen than to spend countless tedious hours trying to make your own for the first time. I'd rather save my time by spending money than save money by spending a lot of time.
If you're treating it as a learning experience and don't mind the extra expense, go for it! You're bound to get something you're proud of (and likely quite frustrated with ;)
Jared: Yes, you will most likely have to purchase the tools of the trade too. Such as: grinder, coarse - fine bits, polish...
Japan4: Can anyone speak about the quality of the Samarkand Jitsuyo Grade slate and shell stones? They are really inexpensive for real shell and slate. Are they a good deal? I would love a set of real shell and slate stones but they all seem so expensive.
jfc: I have a set of slate and shell from Samarkand and I am happy with them. Sure, you could get clamshell stones with a lot more regularity and consistency of grain but then you will have to pay lot more money for them.
Thanks.
Tom: I am curious, what is the most desirable thickness for stones? I don't want to purchase any too thick, but of course not too thin. I guess its a matter of personal taste, but does anyone have any preferences? Its hard to find a place to test different sizes.
- Zarlan: Well, I have a 8mm set and a 9mm set, and personaly I prefer 9mm or maybe stones that are slightly, but not all that much, bigger. 8mm isn't bad though, but smaller stones probably would be.
- pwaldron: For what it's worth, I had the chance to compare once and found my preference to be for 9.2 mm stones. They are large enough to give a feeling of substance, but any larger and the stones wobble around too much on the board.
See also EquipmentDimensions, Caring for Go stones, Making Your Own Equipment, UnusualMaterials.