Beautifully crafted in Italy. Painstakingly hand painted. 3.25 inch king. Exquisite detail Presented on a beautiful Spanish board Distinguished by rich colours of red and orange or blue and purple, these chess men are not modelled on any particular character in history although they do have a King Arthur \'air\' about them. Tall, imperious and draped in a sumptuous cloak, the Kings are adorned an ornate crown and large sword and each is accompanied by a beautiful and elegantly robed queen. You could be forgiven for thinking the bishop resembles Merlin, with his hooded cloak, long white beard and wizened demeanour. The knight is an intimidating dragon whilst a cliff-top castle makes an superb rook. With shield and sword at the ready, the pawns are very smart looking chain-mailed soldiers. We have matched these stunning pieces with a beautiful 15.75 inch walnut and maple board from Spain but The Medieval Themed Chess Men are also available without the board. Either way, this is a superb gift. THE HISTORY Lasting from the 5th to the 15th century, the Medieval period (or the Middle Ages) followed the fall of the Western Roman Empire which advanced into the Renaissance and the Age of Discovery. The middle period of the three traditional sections of Western history (classical antiquity, the medieval period, and the modern period), the medieval period is also subdivided into the Early, High and Late Middle Ages. This era brought about manorialism : an order that saw peasants in villages owing rent and labour services to nobles and also feudalism, where knights and lower nobility owed military service to their Lords in favour of the right to rent from the lands.