In chess, the Greek gift sacrifice, also known as the classical bishop sacrifice, is a typical sacrifice of a bishop by White playing Bxh7+ or Black playing Bxh2+ at some point after the opponent has castled, with the goal generally being to attack and checkmate the opponent's king, or to regain. It is important to consider the opponent's defenses. Greek gift sacrifices, or the threat of them, occur relatively frequently in play, especially at amateur level. One of the most famous examples of the sacrifice is found in the game Edgard Colle–John O'Hanlon, Nice 1930. Less commonly, a Greek gift sacrifice may be the prelude to a double bishop sacrifice, as seen in Lasker–Bauer, Amsterdam 1889.

Requirements

The Greek gift sacrifice usually has several prerequisites in order to succeed. In general, the attack will succeed if: If there is a defending bishop on e7 (or e2), a pawn on h4 (or h5) is necessary. Otherwise, it can be useful.

Illustration

The position after the moves 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.Nf3 Bb4 6.Bd3 0-0 is a simple case where the Greek gift sacrifice works. White can play 7.Bxh7+ Kxh7 8.Ng5+ to force Black to give up the queen to prevent mate:

Etymology

The etymology of the phrase "Greek gift" in this context is not entirely clear. The obvious explanation is that it alludes to the Trojan Horse, and specifically to Laocoön's famous Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes ("I fear the Greeks even when they bring gifts", Virgil's Aeneid II.49). The Oxford Companion to Chess, however, suggests that one explanation is that the sacrifice often occurred in Gioachino Greco's games.