Scholars have observed that, to the modern eye, the figural pieces, with their bulging eyes and glum expressions, have a distinctly comic character. This is especially true of one rook (“warder 4” in Madden’s numbering) with a worried, sideways glance and the berserker rooks biting their shields, which have been called “irresistibly comic to a modern audience”. It is believed, however, that the comic or sad expressions were not intended or perceived as such by the makers, who instead saw strength, ferocity, or in the case of the queens who hold their heads with a hand and seemingly pensive expression, “contemplation, repose, and possibly wisdom”.