Researchers discovered hnefatafl game pieces made of whale bone in upper- and middle-class Vendel graves.

Also known as Viking chess, hnefatafl is a board game in which a centrally located king is attacked from all sides.
The game wasn’t exclusive to the Vendels—people across northern Europe faced off over the gridded board from at least 400 BCE until the 18th century. But during the Vendel period, love for the game was so great that some people literally took it to their graves.
Now, a new analysis of some hnefatafl game pieces unearthed in Vendel burial sites offers unexpected insight into the possible emergence of industrial whaling in northern Europe.
 Read more