Life of Pi

Henry Edward Bird – Paul Charles Morphy
London, 1858
1rb2rk1/p1p3pp/2pb4/3p4/3Pp3/4B2q/PPPQBP1P/2KR3R b - - 3 17

17. ... Rxf2!! “I raise my hat to the great chess artist, but the crude 17. ... Bg4! was correct, or even, according to Euwe, the slow 17. ... Bf5 and ... Bf5-g6”, 13th World Chess Champion Garry Kimovich Kasparov wrote in his book “My Great Predecessors (Part I)”, p. 38. 18. Bxf2 Qa3!! A whole Rook sacrificed is not enough for Morphy! Black sacrifices his Queen too! 19. c3! Bird defends as strenuously as possible. 19. ... Qxa2 20. b4 Qa1+ 21. Kc2 Qa4+ 22. Kb2? White’s defence collapses. Kasparov said that after 22. Kc1 Morphy would have had nothing better than 22. ... Bf5! 23. Be1! Qa1+ 24. Kc2 e3+ 25. Kb3 exd2 26. Rxa1 Re8 27. Ba6 dxe1Q 28. Raxe1 Rxe1 29. Rxe1 Bxh2 30. Bb7 Be4 31. Bxc6 Kf7 with only a slight plus for Black. But after 22. Kc1 Bf5! 23. Be1! Morphy would surely have played 23. ... e3! 24. Qb2 a5! and Black’s vehement attack can continue. 22. ... Bxb4! 23. cxb4 Rxb4+ 24. Qxb4 Qxb4+ 25. Kc2 e3! 26. Bxe3 Bf5+ 27. Rd3 Qc4+ 28. Kd2 Qa2+ 29. Kd1 Qb1+ 0 : 1. Morphy’s Mona Lisa.

Bust of Paul Charles Morphy by Eugène-Louis Lequesne