Carolyn Cavanaugh's House of Hauteville were inspired by 11th century Norman wooden chessmen of Sicily and are now crafted in very limited numbers in the Eastern U.S.Be it décor or the casual game, House of Hauteville elicits a smile with a mix of good artistry and humor. The chessmen are photographed with the elegant Queen Anne chessboard, another exceptional U.S. handcrafted product of Chess House.

The House of Hauteville by Carolyn CavanaughCarolyn shares, "The inspiration for this set of chessmen came from a friend who asked me to make a mantle piece based on a pawn she had seen in a book by John Norwich. I read the book, The Normans in Sicily, and fell in love with the idea of these brave men. The knights and the pawn are directly based on some 11th century Norman wood chessmen that have been preserved at The Biblioteque de National in France. The other pieces are original imaginings. I gave the king a cat because there is a saying (of later vintage) that 'a cat may look upon a king.' The queen has a hawk because she is a warrior woman. I've named the king and queen after the famous warrior duo, Robert Guiscard and his wife Sichelgaita. I often refer to the knights as Tancred and Drogo, also names in the Norman family."