The Lewis Chessmen, or the Uig Chessmen, are a group of medieval chess pieces found on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland in 1831.

They constitute one of the few complete surviving 12thC chess sets, with the total hoard consisting of 78 chess pieces, majority of which are on display in the British Museum in London, with the rest at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh. Almost all of the pieces are carved from walrus ivory, with a few made from whale teeth. All of the pieces are believed to not be of the same set, rather 5 different sets stored together. Most interestingly, the pawns are carved as mere geometric shapes compared to the full human figures of the back row. Additionally, the "warders" (rooks) are shields-men rather than modern castles, despite the rest of the pieces remaining a close analogue to what we are familiar with today.

More information about the impressive hoard can be found here: https://www.historyfight.club/History/

If you're wondering what it would have been like to play with the pieces, we have made a full reconstruction available online. Follow this link to use the iconic pieces in online matches against the computer or other players: https://playlewischess.com


This set on offer is not a full playing set, rather a reconstruction of each type of piece found in the hoard. This includes:

1 x King
1 x Queen
1 x Bishop
1 x Knight
1 x Warder (Rook)
Please Note : Although in image there is no pawn

The back-line pieces measure about 7 cm in height.