| Lewis chessmen | |
|---|---|
 Lewis chessmen in theBritish Museum | |
| Material | Walrusivory and whales' teeth |
| Created | 12th century |
| Discovered | 1831 Uig, Lewis, Scotland |
| Present location | |
| NMS website entry | |
TheLewis chessmen (Scottish Gaelic:Fir-thàilisg Leòdhais[fiɾʲˈhaːlɪʃkʲloː.ɪʃ]) orUig chessmen, named after the island or thebay where they were found,[1] are a group of distinctive 12th-centurychess pieces, along with other game pieces, most of which are carved fromwalrus ivory. Discovered in 1831 on theIsle of Lewis in theOuter Hebrides ofScotland,[2] they may constitute some of the few complete, survivingmedievalchess sets, although it is not clear if a single complete period-accurate set can be assembled from the pieces. When found, the hoard contained 94 objects: 78 chess pieces, 14 tablemen (pieces for backgammon or similar games) and one belt buckle. Today, 82 pieces are owned and usually exhibited by theBritish Museum inLondon, and the remaining 11 are at theNational Museum of Scotland inEdinburgh; at least one chess piece is owned privately.[3][4]
The newly identified piece, a "warder", the equivalent of a rook, was sold for £735,000 in July 2019. Four other major pieces, and many pawns, remain missing from the chess sets.[4]
Most accounts have said the pieces were found atUig Bay (58°11′10″N7°01′19″W / 58.185987°N 7.021909°W /58.185987; -7.021909) on the west coast of Lewis, but Caldwell et al. of National Museums Scotland consider thatMealista (58°06′14″N7°06′29″W / 58.104°N 7.108°W /58.104; -7.108) – which is also in theparish of Uig and some 6 miles (10 km) further south down the coast—is a more likely place for the hoard to have been discovered.[5] The hoard was divided and sold in the 19th century; the British Museum holds 82 pieces, and National Museum of Scotland has 11 pieces, and the recently rediscovered piece is owned privately.[6]
At theBritish Museum,F. Madden, Assistant Keeper of Manuscripts, persuaded the trustees to purchase for 80 guineas (£84) the 82 pieces which he had been misled into believing was the entire hoard. Madden was apalaeographer, a scholar of early vernacular literature, but he was especially intrigued by these artifacts because he was a chess enthusiast.[7][8] Madden immediately began writing a research paper about the collection;[9] the paper remains informative today.[when?][10]
There are many medieval chess bishops of various origins in different museums in Europe and US.[11][12][13]A bishop that probably predates the Lewis chessmen was in the collection of Jean-Joseph Marquet de Vasselot and was sold at Christie's in Paris in 2011 with a radiocarbon dating report stating that there is a 95% probability that the ivory dates between 790 and 990 AD.[14]It is thought to be English or German and carved in the 12th century. Stylistically it predates the Lewis chessmen, as itsmitre is worn sideways.[15][16]
Almost all of the pieces in the collection are carved from walrus ivory, with a few made instead fromwhale teeth. The 79 chess pieces[a] consist of 8 kings, 8 queens, 16 bishops, 15 knights, 13 warders (rooks)[a] and 19 pawns. The heights of the pawns range from 3.5 to 5.8 cm (1 3 / 8 to2 9 / 32 in), while the other pieces are between 7 and 10.2 cm (2 3 / 4 and 4 in). Although there are 19 pawns (a complete set requires 16), they have the greatest range of sizes of all the pieces, which has suggested that the 79 chess pieces might belong to at least five sets.[17] All the pawns are smaller, geometric shapes – cylinders and "tombstones" – perhaps intended to resembleboundary markers. All the pieces in the back rank are sculptures of human figures: The knights are mounted onrather diminutive horses and are shown holding spears and shields. The rooks are standing soldiers or "warders" holding shields and swords; four of the rooks are shown as wild-eyedberserkers biting their shields with battle fury.[18] Some pieces bore traces of red stain when found (which has since vanished), possibly indicating that red and white were used to distinguish the two sides, rather than the black and white generally used in modern chess.[19]
Scholars have observed that, to the modern eye, the figural pieces, with their bulging eyes and glum expressions, have a distinctly comic character.[20][21] This is especially true of one rook ("warder 4" in Madden's numbering) with a worried, sideways glance and the berserker rooks biting their shields, which have been called "irresistibly comic to a modern audience".[22] It is believed, however, that the comic or sad expressions were not intended or perceived as such by the makers, who instead saw strength, ferocity, or in the case of the queens who hold their heads with a hand and seemingly pensive expression, "contemplation, repose, and possibly wisdom".[20]
Moreover, a recent article has examined how one of the king pieces projected a racialised representation of the archetypal chess king. Chess pieces envisioned human bodies which were constantly re-imagined and re-interpreted in the medieval period, and the Lewis chess king is fittingly characterised by a beard, hairstyle, and facial features that would not stand out in twelfth-century Norway, the supposed origin point of the set.[23]
The chessmen were discovered in early 1831 in asandbank at the head of Uig Bay on the west coast of the Isle of Lewis, in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. There are various local stories concerning their arrival and modern discovery on Lewis.
Malcolm "Sprot" MacLeod (Scottish Gaelic:Calum an Sprot) from the nearbytownship of Pennydonald discovered the trove in a small stonekist in a dune, exhibited them briefly in hisbyre and sold them on to Captain Roderick Ryrie.[24] One reported detail, that a cow actually unearthed the stash, is generally discounted inUig as fabrication. After the Isle of Lewis was purchased byJ. Matheson in 1844, Malcolm MacLeod and his family were evicted during theHighland Clearances which transformed the area into sheep farms.
When the chessmen were uncovered in 1831, 1 knight and 4 warders were missing from the four sets.[3] In June 2019 a warder piece, which had previously gone unrecognised for at least 55 years, emerged in Edinburgh,[3] and was purchased at aSotheby's auction for £735,000 the following month, by an undisclosed buyer.[4]
They were exhibited by Ryrie at a meeting of theSociety of Antiquaries of Scotland, on 11 April 1831. The chessmen were soon after split up, with 10 being purchased byC.K. Sharpe and the others (67 chessmen and 14 tablemen) purchased on behalf of the British Museum in London.
C.K. Sharpe later found another bishop to take his collection up to 11, all of which were later sold toBaron Londesborough. In 1888, they were again sold, but this time the purchaser was theSociety of Antiquaries of Scotland, who donated the pieces to theRoyal Scottish Museum in Edinburgh. The 11 are now on display in theNational Museum of Scotland.
Of the pieces given to the British Museum, most can be found in Room 40, with the registration numbers M&ME 1831, 11–1.78–159. Others have been lent to Scottish museums and temporary exhibitions.[25]A range of wooden or plastic replicas are popular items in the Museum shops.
The chessmen were number 5 in the list of British archaeological finds selected by experts at the British Museum for a 2003 BBC documentary.[26] They were one of the items featured in a 2010Radio 4 historical series.[27]
An exhibition entitled "The Lewis Chessmen: Unmasked" included chess pieces from both the National Museum of Scotland and British Museum collections, along with other relevant objects, touring Scotland in 2010–2011. The exhibition opened in Edinburgh on 21 May 2010 and proceeded to Aberdeen,Shetland, and the Museum nan Eilean inStornoway, opening there on 15 April 2011.[28]
An exhibition entitled "The Game of Kings: Medieval Ivory Chessmen from the Isle of Lewis" atThe Cloisters in New York City included 34 of the chess pieces, all on loan from the British Museum. The exhibit lasted through 22 April 2012.[29]
On 3 April 2013, £1.8 million from theEuropean Regional Development Fund was granted to transformLews Castle,Isle of Lewis, into a museum forthe Western Isles. Around £14 million in total is to be spent on restoring and converting the property, which has been shuttered for nearly 25 years. When completed the permanent displays will include 6 Lewis chessmen.[30]
The Edinburgh warder piece was displayed in a special exhibit at theNeue Galerie New York in 2023, as part of a special exhibit.[31][4]
In in late 2007, a dispute arose as to where the main resting place of the pieces should be.[32] There were calls fromScottish National Party politicians in the Western Isles (notably Councillor Annie Macdonald,Alasdair Allan MSP andAngus MacNeil MP) for the return of the pieces to the place they were found.Linda Fabiani, ScottishMinister for Europe, External Affairs and Culture, stated that "it is unacceptable that only 11 Lewis chessmen rest at the National Museum of Scotland while the other 67 (as well as the 14 tablemen) remain in the British Museum in London."
Richard Oram, Professor of Medieval and Environmental History at theUniversity of Stirling, agreed, arguing that there was no reason for there to be more than "a sample" of the collection in London. These views were dismissed byMargaret Hodge, the then UKMinister of State in theDepartment for Culture, Media and Sport, writing "It's a lot of nonsense, isn't it?", noting that the law protects purchases and drawing comparisons to major artworks in Europe housed in major cities, with replicas often availablein situ where tourism is sufficient.[24] The historical society in Uig,Comann Eachdraidh Ùig, which operates its museum near the find site, features detailed information about the chessmen and Norse occupation in Lewis. It has published that it cannot claim to own the pieces and would allow the normal museum market to determine whether more originals should rest in Edinburgh. It welcomes short-term loans.[33][full citation needed]
In October 2009, 24 of the pieces from London and 6 from Edinburgh began a 16 month tour of Scotland, partly funded by theScottish Government, whoseMike Russell,Minister for Culture and External Affairs, stated that the Government and the British Museum had "agreed to disagree" on their eventual fate.Bonnie Greer, the museum's deputy chairman, said that she "absolutely" believed the main collection should remain in London.[34]
Neil MacGregor, who at the time of the debate was director of the British Museum, was reported to say that it was Norway who was entitled to ask for them back, not Scotland.[35]M. Bunting writes that:
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