What were Lewis chessmen made of?
Most of the Lewis chess pieces are made from walrus ivory. This was probably obtained in Greenland and traded back to Norway. Two of the pieces in our collection (and three British Museum pieces) are different, carved from sperm-whale teeth.
Where are the Lewis chessmen in the British Museum?
See the Lewis Chessmen on Google Street View or Sketchfab in 3D in Room 40 at the British Museum and at National Museums Scotland in Edinburgh. You can also learn more about them in our Objects in Focus book and shop the Museum’s Lewis Chessmen collection – including a replica set – here.
How many chess pieces are there?
32 pieces
What is the most powerful chess piece?
Queen The
What is elephant called in chess?
alfil
Can a pawn move backwards?
Unlike the other pieces, pawns cannot move backwards. Normally a pawn moves by advancing a single square, but the first time a pawn moves, it has the option of advancing two squares.
Can a rook jump over a pawn?
Placement and movement The rook cannot jump over pieces. As with captures by other pieces, the rook captures by occupying the square on which the enemy piece sits. The rook also participates, with the king, in a special move called castling.
Can a pawn move forward and capture in one turn?
The first time each pawn is moved it has the option of moving two spaces forward instead of the usual one space. After a pawn moves (either one or two spaces), this option is lost for that piece. Pawns capture only by moving diagonally. This is the only way they can capture, and the only way they can move diagonally.
Which two pieces combined move closest to the same way as the Queen?
During the 15th century the queen’s move took its modern form as a combination of the move of the rook and the current move of the bishop.
Can be promoted to any piece?
A player may promote to any piece they wish, regardless of whether or not such a piece has been captured. In theory, a player could have nine queens, ten knights, ten bishops or ten rooks, though these are highly improbable scenarios. Some chess sets come with an extra queen of each color to use for promoted pawns.
Can a pawn take a pawn next to it?
“A pawn attacking a square crossed by an opponent’s pawn which has advanced two squares in one move from its original square may capture this opponent’s pawn as though the latter had been moved only one square. This capture is only legal on the move following this advance and is called an ‘en passant’ capture.”