Museum
National Museum of Scotland
Ivory chess pieces carved eight centuries ago, at the centre of an unresolved ownership dispute.
0:00≈ 2 min
Location
0:00≈ 2 min
About this audio guide
This guide to the National Museum of Scotland centers on the Lewis chessmen, a hoard of ivory chess pieces found buried in a sand dune on the Isle of Lewis in 1831 by a crofter named Malcolm MacLeod. You'll hear how the pieces passed through a chain of dealers who split the hoard between London and Edinburgh, and how Scottish politicians have argued since 2007 that they belong back together. It follows the ownership dispute through the British Museum's response and an uneasy compromise that still leaves almost everyone unsatisfied.
This audio guide was created using AI.