I don't have many Iron Age game pieces, so I hope you'll forgive the not very good photos. They're only small, about thumb-sized, and my camera's outdoor lens is not suited for inside.

The museum label just says "Gaming pieces, Tingwall". (Shetland Museum, Lerwick.)

#IronAge #OldGames #Shetland #MuseumPhotos

This little fellow at the Scalloway museum bears striking resemblance to one in previous photo. Its label says ""Replica of a late Iron Age steatite gaming piece found in the interior of the Scallowy broch during excavations in the 1980s."

There's a lot of interest in this one on various websites, including the following quote.

"There are a number of carved stone boards, notably from the Orkneys, the designs of which reveal they were for this type of game [tafl], as well as two probable playing pieces from Shetland, among the most spectacular examples found in Scotland. One of them, a sixth century piece was found during an excavation of a much earlier broch (an Iron Age round tower) in Scalloway and could be a hnefi, or king-piece, from a tafl-type game. Traces of staining may suggest that this piece was originally coloured. A fascinating feature is the sunken triangular panel above the brow with small holes at each angle; this space likely held a decorative inset of amber, glass or metal, which may have helped to distinguish the piece as a key one. ("Unearthing 2000 Years of Board Games in Scotland, https://www.digitscotland.com/unearthing-2000-years-of-board-games-in-scotland/)