THE Scottish Government has backed a Yes group’s calls for the Lewis chessmen to be returned to Scotland.
The renewed calls come as the vast majority of the famed 12th-century chess pieces, discovered at Uig on the Isle of Lewis in 1831, have been sent to France by the British Museum in return for a loan of the Bayeux Tapestry.
In a letter to Scottish Culture Secretary Mairi McAllan, the Yes Dunbar group said that the loan of the chess pieces had “barely been reported” while the focus was on the tapestry. The British Museum page about the tapestry exhibition makes no mention of the Lewis artefacts, only hinting at a “historic agreement with France”.
Yes Dunbar’s co-convener Julie Watt said this “raises important questions about how the histories and cultural identities of the nations of our so-called ‘United Kingdom’ are represented”.
“Placing the Bayeux Tapestry at the centre of this cultural exchange, and focusing the exhibition solely in London, while treasures such as the Lewis chessmen are used as bargaining chips with comparatively little public debate, reinforces a version of history in which England’s story takes precedence over the distinct histories and identities of the other nations,” she went on.
“The Bayeux Tapestry exhibition is set to generate millions for the British Museum, with more than £2.3 million already raised through ticket sales, alongside further lucrative merchandise sales. Very little, if any, of this financial benefit will reach Scotland.
“If the chessmen were to be returned and the set reunited, there would be enormous public interest. They would draw in visitors from around the world and provide a huge economic boost to the Hebrides in particular if exhibited there. Our own museum services could arrange international exchanges with other museums and Scotland would benefit culturally and economically from that.
“We therefore call on you, as Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic, to make clear that Scotland’s cultural heritage matters too and to challenge the outdated law that the British Museum hides behind.
“We call on you to formally demand that the Lewis Chessmen be returned to Scotland and to continue to campaign to that end.”
There are 94 known Lewis chess pieces, 82 of which are normally kept at the British Museum in London (which bought them for around £8000 in today’s money soon after their discovery). A further 11 are kept by the National Museum of Scotland, while a lost piece found in a drawer in Edinburgh in 2019 was sold to a private collector for £735,000.
Watt noted that six of the British Museum pieces have been on long-term loan to Museum nan Eilean in Stornoway since 2014, but added: “Should we be content with this? The British Museum still retains overall ownership and control.”
Responding to the letter, a Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The Scottish Government is strongly sympathetic to calls for all of the Lewis Chessmen to be reunited in Scotland and will continue to make the case for their return.”
A British Museum spokesperson said: "As one of the UK’s national museums, we are committed to making it as widely accessible as possible and we recognise the significance certain objects have in different areas of the UK.
"The Lewis chess pieces have a long history of being loaned both within the UK and internationally, and we remain committed to ensuring public access to them in Scotland.
"Six pieces have been on long-term loan to Museum nan Eilean in Stornoway since 2014, while a further 11 are held and displayed by the National Museum of Scotland."
