Isle Of Lewis Chess Sets

Isle of Lewis chess sets

The Lewis chessmen are the most recognisable chess pieces ever carved: seated kings and queens, bishops with their mitres, mounted knights, and rooks shaped as warders, several of them biting the tops of their shields. Sterling Chess stocks reproductions of them in pewter and in polyresin, each supplied with its own board. They sit inside the wider theme chess sets range.

The originals

In 1831 a hoard of carved gaming pieces was found on the Isle of Lewis, in the Outer Hebrides off the north west coast of Scotland. They are carved from walrus ivory, dated to the twelfth century, and generally attributed to Norse craftsmen, with Trondheim in Norway the usual candidate for where they were made. The hoard is now divided between the British Museum and National Museums Scotland.

What makes them extraordinary is that they have faces. Medieval chess pieces are usually abstract, and the Lewis carvings are not: the queens rest a hand against the cheek in an attitude somewhere between boredom and despair, the kings sit holding swords across their laps, and the warders have the look of men who have been standing a very long time. They are the reason most people can picture a medieval chess piece at all.

A practical note if you are buying to play rather than to display: the Lewis figures are seated and squat rather than tall and turned, so they read quite differently across a board from a Staunton army. Most people buy them for exactly that reason.

What Sterling Chess stocks

• A pewter reproduction. Hand-cast in pewter, with one army in bright polished pewter and the other in a dark matte finish, on a nyatoh timber board with a scorched interwoven knot motif. Made by Royal Selangor.
• A polyresin reproduction. Cast in polyresin and supplied with a 40cm walnut inlaid flat board. The more accessible option here, and the closer to the colour of the museum originals. Made by Dal Rossi.

Both are reproductions, made and sold as such. Neither is an antique and neither is walrus ivory, which is what the originals were carved from. Browse the makers in Royal Selangor and Dal Rossi.

Lewis chessmen or Isle of Lewis chess set?

Both names refer to the same thing and you will see them used interchangeably. Lewis chessmen usually refers to the historical carvings themselves; Isle of Lewis chess set is the more common way to describe a reproduction you can buy and play with. Some sellers also use Uig chessmen, after the bay where the hoard was found.

Browse related

• Staunton chess sets. The traditional pattern, if you want an army that reads instantly across a board.
• Metal chess sets. Pewter, stainless steel and brass sets, where the pewter Lewis reproduction also sits.
• Reproduction chess sets. Faithful recreations of documented historical patterns.
• Luxury chess sets. The upper end of the catalogue.
• All chess sets. The full range.

Buying an Isle of Lewis chess set in Australia

Everything here is held in Australian stock and shipped from Australia, so there is no international freight wait and no customs step. Each arrives with its board.

All products sold by Sterling Chess are backed by a 12 month limited manufacturer warranty. This covers manufacturing defects and cracking, and ensures every product is 100% genuine. Sterling Chess also offers 100 day free returns.

Isle of Lewis chess set FAQs

What are the Lewis chessmen?

A hoard of carved gaming pieces found on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland in 1831, carved from walrus ivory in the twelfth century and generally attributed to Norse craftsmen. They are now divided between the British Museum and National Museums Scotland.

Are these sets genuine antiques?

No, and they are not sold as such. Both are modern reproductions of the historical carvings. The originals are museum objects and are not in private hands.

What are the reproductions made from?

One is hand-cast pewter, the other is polyresin. Neither is walrus ivory, which is what the originals were carved from and which cannot legally be traded.

Do they come with a board?

Yes. Each set includes a board: a nyatoh timber board with the pewter set, and a 40cm walnut inlaid board with the polyresin set.

Can you actually play with them?

Yes. The pieces are seated figures rather than turned Staunton shapes, so a position reads differently across the board, but they are fully playable and the pieces are stable.

Why do the rooks look like they are biting their shields?

The warders, which take the rook's place, are modelled on berserkers, Norse warriors described in the sagas as biting the rims of their shields before battle. It is one of the details that makes the set instantly recognisable.