How a bishop moves in chess

   Each player begins the game with two bishops, one light-squared and one dark-squared, which initially occupy the squares between the king or queen and the knight. In algebraic notation the starting squares are c1 and f1 for White's bishops, and c8 and f8 for Black's bishops. The piece's deep groove symbolizes a bishop's mitre.

   The bishop can move any distance along an unobstructed diagonal line of squares. Placed in the center of an open board, the bishop attacks a maximum of 13 squares. Bishops cannot jump over other pieces. A bishop captures by occupying the square on which an enemy piece sits.

   The bishops may be distinguished according to which wing they begin on, i.e. the king's bishop and queen's bishop. The bishop's uniqueness lies in the fact that its existence is completely monochromatic: a bishop may only move to squares of one color. Each players begins the game with one white or light bishop and one black or dark.

Above: Nifty Nicaraguan stamp (1983) depicting the moves of a bishop.

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