View down an aisle of archival shelving. Text overlay: From the Collections

Written by Marta Kelly, Manuscripts and Special Collections Unit

A piece of sheet music is not where you’d normally expect to find a challenging chess puzzle, and yet the Check Mate Galop by Carl Frommel (1843-1916) features exactly that.

Cover of the Check Mate Galop by Carl Frommel, printed in ornate block lettering. The top of the page has a dedication: to the officers and brother members of the Danites Chess Club of Brooklyn. The cover also features an illustration of a chess puzzle enclosed in an ornate decorative frame.
First page of sheet music for the Check Mate Galop, a lively piece of music for piano.

Published in 1882, this jaunty piano piece was dedicated to the Danites Chess Club of Brooklyn, of which Frommel was a member. The club was superseded by the Brooklyn Chess Club less than a decade after the Check Mate Galop was published.

If you’d like to try your hand at playing the song yourself, the Check Mate Galop sheet music is available in the Library’s Digital Collections. 

The Puzzle

Now back to that puzzle. The challenge is thus: In two moves, white can checkmate black. Do you think you can solve it?

Close up of the chess puzzle. Inside of an ornate border of illustrated florals and chess pieces, the following pieces are situated: white bishop a1; white knight c2; white queen d2; white king h3; white rook h4; white pawn g5; white knight g7; white rook c8; black pawn d3; black bishop e4; black bishop c5; black queen d5; black pawn f5; black pawn d6; black pawn g6. A prompt at the bottom of the puzzle says: Check mate in two moves.

Puzzle Hints

We’ve included two hints below for those needing a little help. Be sure to check out our follow-up post for the solution!

Hint 1:

The puzzle is an example of zugzwang, a concept in chess where making any move puts the player in a worse position. What move can white make that puts black in zugzwang?

Hint 2:

White’s first move doesn’t obviously advance their position. Look for a move that doesn’t seem to benefit white, but only gives black bad options.

Changing the Game: Board Games, Card Games, and TTRPGS

This item features as part of the display Changing the Game: Board Games, Card Games, and TTRPGS running August and September 2025 on the 7th floor of the NYS Library in the Cultural Education Center. In celebration of the history of games and the universality of play, NYS Library staff dug deep within the Library’s vast collections to feature hidden gems relating to games and gaming. Explore the classics like card games, chess, and backgammon, modern day favorites like Dungeons and Dragons, and games that capture historical moments in-between.  

Beat the Heat: Visit the NYS Library!

Visiting the NYS Library and connecting with something new (or old) is a great way to beat the heat this summer! 

We can't wait to welcome you to the Cultural Education Center (CEC). Here are some resources that may help you plan your visit: