Lewis Chessmen
E128269
The Lewis Chessmen are a famous collection of 12th-century walrus-ivory chess pieces discovered on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland, renowned for their expressive, carved medieval figures.
All labels observed (2)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Lewis Chessmen canonical | 3 |
| Lewis chess pieces | 1 |
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
archaeological artifact collection
ⓘ
cultural heritage object ⓘ medieval chess set ⓘ |
| artHistoricalContext | Romanesque sculpture of 12th-century Norway ⓘ |
| associatedWith |
Norse presence in Scotland
ⓘ
history of chess in Europe ⓘ |
| collectionSize |
12 warders
ⓘ
15 knights ⓘ 16 bishops ⓘ 19 pawns ⓘ 8 kings ⓘ 8 queens ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin | Norway ⓘ |
| depicts |
armed warriors
ⓘ
medieval clergy ⓘ medieval royalty ⓘ |
| discoveredIn |
Isle of Lewis
ⓘ
Outer Hebrides ⓘ |
| discoveredInCountry | Scotland ⓘ |
| discoveryDate | 1831 ⓘ |
| foundInCollection |
British Museum medieval Europe collection
ⓘ
National Museum of Scotland ⓘ
surface form:
National Museum of Scotland Scottish history collection
|
| genre | medieval Scandinavian art ⓘ |
| hasPart |
bishops
ⓘ
chess king pieces ⓘ chess queen pieces ⓘ knights ⓘ pawns ⓘ warders ⓘ |
| heritageDesignation | iconic symbol of medieval European chess ⓘ |
| iconography | biting-the-shield berserker warders ⓘ |
| inception | 12th century ⓘ |
| influenced | modern representations of medieval chess ⓘ |
| languageOfInscription | none ⓘ |
| material | walrus ivory ⓘ |
| notableFeature |
Romanesque artistic style
ⓘ
expressive carved faces ⓘ |
| numberOfItems | 93 ⓘ |
| numberOfItemsAtLocation |
11 at the National Museum of Scotland
ⓘ
82 at the British Museum ⓘ |
| period | High Middle Ages ⓘ |
| presentLocation |
British Museum
ⓘ
National Museum of Scotland ⓘ |
| probablePlaceOfOrigin | Trondheim ⓘ |
| productionMethod | hand-carved ⓘ |
| significantEvent |
loan exhibitions in various museums worldwide
ⓘ
public exhibition at the British Museum ⓘ |
| usedFor | playing chess ⓘ |
Referenced by (4)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
Lewis chess pieces