The exquisitely carved Twelfth Century walrus ivory Uig chessmen were found hidden in a small stone structure near Ardroil on Camas Uig. They were probably produced in a workshop in Trondheim, Norway. In 1831 a local man discovered the hoard of what he thought were fairies or elves. Some say that the sea uncovered their hiding place, while others say that a cow broke down a wall to reveal them. There is even a story, which includes theft and a murder. 78 chess pieces and fifteen other items made up the total find. Unfortunately the collection was split up. The Scottish Society of Antiquarians refused them so 82 pieces were bought by the British Museum and the remaining 11 eventually ended up in the National Museum of Scotland. Much more information about the Uig Chessmen can be found in the Museum at the Uig Community Centre.

There is no doubt that the people who came from the country we now call Norway, settled in the Western Isles. Their houses have been found in the Uists. They farmed the land and ruled these islands for over 450 years. Almost every hill, loch, bay, headland and village in Uig has a Norse name. Uig itself is Old Norse for bay. Bhal(fjall) means hill, -ay is island, -ness is headland and stadh(stadir) is farm or dwelling place.

So far the remains of Norse houses have not been found in Uig. They are probably hidden beneath the present buildings in the townships. However at Cnip in the Valtos peninsula a number of rich Norse burials have been found. They contained ornate brooches, beads, knives, sickles, pins and finely decorated belts. These were the property of rich and powerful ladies, who must have lived here.

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A few years after the Battle of Largs in 1263, the Norse gave up control of the Hebrides, but the Treaty of Perth allowed settlers to remain if they chose to. Norse blood still flows through the veins of some of the indigenous population of Uig today. The surnames Macleod, Macaulay and Morrison originated in the time of the Norse settlers. Mainlanders once knew the whole of the Western Isles as Innse Gall - the Islands of Foreigners - they called the people Gallgaels.

To see a giant 8 ft carving of one of the Kings in the collection, visit Camas Uig at Ardroil.

It is also possible to learn more about the chessmen and other Uig stories on a GPS storytelling i-pack, available to hire from Uig Community Co-operative and, during the summer months, from Uig Museum.

Adapted from a piece by Dave Roberts, Comunn Eachdraidh Uig