Very small Russian rice chess game

I purchased this cute little wooden set (age unknown) which was sold as a ‘Russian rice chess game’ not having heard of this description before – the pawns are almost 2 cms high with the king being 4.2 cms tall.

The unusual shape of the pieces and the giraffe style knights was won on E BAY AFTER A SHORT BIDDING FRENZY – fail to win it and it just might have been offered for sale at three times the final price ! The pieces have tiny weights and look pretty good on the small board. Getting the right square size can ruin the look of the set.  The fruitwood pieces came in a chip box – I have seen early 19th century chess men in similar type  boxes.