Lewis Chessmen touring exhibition to visit Shetland in 2011
National Museums Scotland have announced a major new touring exhibition on the Lewis Chessmen, which will come to the Shetland Museum and Archives in January 2011.
Made possible by a partnership with the British Museum and funding from the Scottish Government, the exhibition will open at the National Museum of Scotland in May 2010 before touring to Aberdeen Art Gallery, Shetland Museum & Archives and Museum nan Eilean in Stornoway.
The exhibition tour will include 30 chess pieces – 24 from the British Museum and 6 from National Museums Scotland. It will look at the mystery and intrigue surrounding the chessmen, explore the stories surrounding their discovery and show how the characters reflected society at the time they were made.
The Lewis Chessmen were discovered on the western shore of the Isle of Lewis in 1831, as part of a hoard of walrus ivory. The hoard includes assembled pieces from at least four chess-sets, probably made in Norway in the late 12th or early 13th century. As the largest and finest group of early chessmen to survive, they are one of the most significant archaeological discoveries ever made in Scotland and of international importance. Few chessmen survive at all from the Middle Ages, and these are unparalleled in their high-quality, humour and intricacy of design.
The tour dates are:
National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh / 21 May – 19 September 2010
Aberdeen Art Gallery / 7 October 2010 – 8 January 2011
Shetland Museum & Archives / 29 January 2011 – 27 March 2011
Museum nan Eilean, Stornoway / 15 April 2011 – 12 September 2011
The exhibition is the latest example of a wide range of national and international partnerships formed by National Museums Scotland to increase access to collections and expertise. These include a major partnership with the Shetland Amenity Trust, which led to the loan of the St Ninian’s Isle Treasure in 2008 and the Gunnister Man in 2009, both of which were exhibited to the public in the Shetland Museum and Archives.
