Nathaniel Hawthorne

The House of the Seven Gables Nathaniel Hawthorne

The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne

The weather-beaten House of the Seven Gables, the 200-year-old mansion owned by the Pyncheon family, is located in a New England town. Two centuries ago, the land on which the House stands belonged to an obscure villager named Matthew Maule. Colonel Pyncheon, a powerful citizen, wanted that land. After a protracted dispute over ownership, Maule is executed for alleged witchcraft. Colonel Pyncheon appears to be especially zealous in pursuing this sentence. However, just before Maule is hanged, he curses Pyncheon: "God will give him blood to drink!"

Shortly after Maule's death, Colonel Pyncheon began building an elaborate mansion on the former Maule estate; Maule's son Thomas is an architect and chief carpenter. After the house is finished, Colonel Pyncheon throws a city-wide party. However, he does not personally greet his guests. When the lieutenant governor, followed by the rest of the guests, breaks into the Colonel's study, he finds the Colonel dead, with blood on his neck and beard. Although rumors abound, a foul playtest is never established