A Historical Mystery, Played Out...

Not many people, unless they're serious chess fans (or paying attention during the first Harry Potter movie--they were used on-set), know about the late 11th or 12th century Lewis chessmen.

These strange pieces were found in 1831 in, of all places, a sandbank! A man named Malcolm "Sport" Macleod discovered them, minus board, in a dune on the Isle of Lewis on Scotland's Outer Hebrides. Sometimes they're called the Ulg chessmen, after the bay they were found by. (One story has them being scraped out by a cow.) Sport extricated the pieces from the little chamber he found them in, exhibited them, and eventually sold them to a rich collector. (Sadly, the MacLeods were among those families booted out a few years later during the Great Potato Famine.) The collection was eventually split up, sold and resold, with the majority of the pieces purchased by the British Museum in London. (Eleven are in the Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh.)   The British Museum's report on the chessmen is here.

Some factors affect this set. For one, The 78 pieces (the British museum says 93) consist of eight kings, eight queens, 16 bishops, 15 knights, 12 rooks and 19 pawns. Way more pieces than needed for just one set! Some experts think these were a dealer's samples, representing up to five sets, destined for wealthy Viking settlements like Dublin. (Yes, Ireland.) 

Another is their unusual design. Some of the pieces, especially the king and queen ones, resemble similar pieces found during archeological excavations in Trondheim, Norway. Could the set have originally come from Norway, instead?

Nearly all the pieces are hand-carved from walrus ivory. (A few are carved from whale's teeth, instead.) Some show traces of red paint, suggesting that the opposing sides were actually red and white, rather than dark and white.  

All images are from Wikipedia...the queen's expression is supposed

 to represent meditation, the experts think. (Yeah, right...)

 The rooks are Viking 'berserkers,' the then-civilized world's most feared warrior. These are so much in the mood for attacking, they're biting their shields in fury.

Mr. Rook, in all his enraged glory. Get a hobby, man!

Chess was known during the medieval period -- but so was an Celtic variation named Fidchell. (Also spelled fidhcheall, fidceall, fitchneal or fithchill.) These pieces may have been meant for that game, instead, since Fidchell was common in Ireland and Wales before the 1200s. The game is mentioned in ancient Celtic legends, and was said to be a favorite of the gods.Chess, on the other hand, was just starting to be played in this part of Europe at this time.

Copies of the Lewish chessmen are readily available from a variety of places; the Museum of Scotland's set is copied directly via laser scan from the originals, and is thought to be one of the most authentic.

Considering that one -- just one -- Scandinavian chess piece -- most probably a queen with her attendants -- sold recently for $443,000 (see the photo below) --

Well, a few hundred dollars or less for a replica of this fascinating Lewis chessmen set is a good buy.  An excellent book on the subject: The Lewis Chessmen: Unmasked by David Caldwell. (Besides its examination of the theories and controversies connected with the set, the book includes photos of every single piece, something you won't find elsewhere.)

Where did the Lewish chessmen really come from? Who made them? What do they represent? Even if we're not sure, their wild, expressive faces are an intriguing puzzle to ponder.