After a long trip through rural Georgia, my love for antebellum Greek Revival homes is back at an all time high. Although not one we saw on the trip, Gaineswood in Demopolis, Alabama, is one of the most amazing Greek Revival homes ever built. All photos come from the HABS website and are available here.
Gaineswood, circa 1910.
Gaineswood, 1935.
The facades of the house are extraordinarily complex.
Niches dot the exterior of the home and contain classical statues.
Love this photograph of the roof that reveals stained glass windows and a skylight, slightly reminiscent of the view of the roof-line of Sir John Soane's house from the second floor in London.
The ballroom contains a spectacular plaster ceiling. The Colonial Revival furniture couldn't be more inappropriate for a room of this grandeur.
I'm not sure the chandelier could be more disappointing... that amazing ceiling requires an even more incredible fixture.
This would most definitely be my bedroom. Those Tower of the Winds columns are phenomenal... yet again the bizarre usage of Colonial Revival furniture and the lackluster lighting would have to go...
The summer house... I can just imagine the purple silk waistcoat I would wear in this faux Temple of Vesta while I watched my peacocks strut across the lawn...
Truly wonderful! Shall we move in? Is it still around or like other grand homes has it been demolished?
ReplyDeleteIt's still there... as a house museum... so we just need to buy it from the Alabama Historical Commission...
ReplyDeleteI toured the mansion while I was still in high school. My teacher and I tuck a day trip to Demopolis to see the Antebellum homes. Because she was from there I got a private tour of the place. Gaineswood is amazing! I have not been back since but want to go very soon.
ReplyDeleteOh Lorde, this place is amazing. Especially that first shot...it's where I imagine myself living when I'm old and creepy(er), I may need to ask you where you'll buy your waistcoat..
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