Above This Staircase Was A Lofty
Dome, Decorated With Paintings In Fresco Of Eastern Scenes.
There were
niches in the walls, some containing Italian statuary, and others small
jets of water pouring over artificial moss,
There were six or eight magnificent reception-rooms, furnished in various
styles - the Mediaeval, the Elizabethan, the Italian, the Persian, the
modern English, &c. There were fountains of fairy workmanship, pictures
from the old masters, statues from Italy, "chefs-d'oeuvre" of art;
porcelain from China and Sèvres; damasks, cloth of gold, and bijoux from
the East; Gobelin tapestry, tables of malachite and agate, and "knick-
knacks" of every description. In the Mediaeval and Elizabethan apartments,
it did not appear to me that any anachronisms had been committed with
respect to the furniture and decorations. The light was subdued by passing
through windows of rich stained glass. I saw one table the value of which
might be about 2000 guineas. The ground was black marble, with a wreath of
flowers inlaid with very costly gems upon it. There were flowers or
bunches of fruit, of turquoise, carbuncles, rubies, topazes, and emeralds,
while the leaves were of malachite, cornelian, or agate. The effect
produced by this lavish employment of wealth was not very good. The
bedrooms were scarcely less magnificently furnished than the reception-
rooms; with chairs formed of stag-horns, tables inlaid with agates, and
hangings of Damascus cashmere, richly embossed with gold. There was
nothing gaudy, profuse, or prominent in the decorations or furniture;
everything had evidently been selected and arranged by a person of very
refined taste.
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