Game Board
Do you like playing chess and draughts?
This object is part of a Viking Age playing board for a game called hnefatafl which, like chess, was played with two teams of men.
The idea is to capture the other person's king. We know from old books that Viking kings like Harold Finehair liked playing this game.
Playing pieces were made from lots of different materials including wood, jet, walrus ivory, stone, bone and antler.
The rest of the playing board was not found. Perhaps it had fallen apart and the other bits were used for firewood.
You can see the board and playing pieces in JORVIK in York.
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