Antique Eye Candy

There are a number of stained glass windows here and there throughout Craigdarroch Castle - one in the smoking room features Sir Walter Raleigh smoking a pipe - but I find the one pictured above to be the most attractive. A hundred years ago when there were no big-screen tvs or brilliant HD monitors, something as bright and colorful as this window must have been very satisfying.

Tile in the Tower

In a comment on yesterday's post JoJo mentioned the tile floor in the tiny round topmost room of the castle, providing the perfect excuse for me to post a photo of said floor. I think the emblems are Scottish - that's a general theme in the castle - but my knowledge of heraldry is scant to say the least. (Thank you JoJo!)

The High Life

At the very top of the Craigdarroch Castle staircase is a small circular tower with one of the best views of the city to be had. You can get some idea of the height by looking at my little black scooter parked far below.

Craigdarroch Castle IV

The amount of beautiful wood paneling through the castle is quite overwhelming. But is all perfectly fitted and looking splendid, even after more than a hundred years. Apparently all the woodwork was made in a factory in Chicago and then shipped out here and assembled. There are some fascinating details (see below)

Craigdarroch Castle III

One of the things that makes a visit to Craigdarroch Castle a pleasure is the way so many of the rooms have been furnished with period items and real attention to detail. Viewing these rooms is like a peek into the family life of an upper class family a hundred years ago. Above is the dining room table set for breakfast. Note the baby's high chair down at the far end. I am mystified by the odd-shaped item on the table that is pictured to the left. Does anyone know what that thing is? Below is another table laden with snacks and munchies up in the billiard room on the top floor.

Craigdarroch Castle II

Above is a more oblique view of Craigdarroch Castle than that published a few days ago. Below are portraits from inside the castle of its builder, the Honourable Robert Dunsmuir, and his wife Joan. Robert died before the castle was completed but his wife and ten children lived there for many years. Robert Dunsmuir came to Vancouver Island from Scotland in 1851 as an indentured miner for $5 a week. Thirty-eight years later he died the richest man in the colony, worth an estimated $15 million (valued at about $400 million today). His is an interesting story and Wikipedia has a short biography you can read by clicking HERE.

Craigdarroch Castle

When I was posting some photos of the Italian Garden at Hatley Castle a week or so ago I mentioned that I intended to take a look at Victoria's other castle, Craigdarroch Castle. Both of these local castles were built by the same family, the Dunsmuirs. The coal baron father, Robert Dunsmuir, built the one pictured above in 1890. One of his sons, James Dunsmuir, built Hatley Castle in 1908. We'll have a closer look at Craigdarroch later in the week.

Craigdarroch Castle

From a distance Craigdarroch Castle looks like a magical place (scroll down to see yesterday's photo). Up close it doesn't disappoint. It was built by pioneer coal baron, Robert Dunsmuir, to fulfill a promise made to his young bride long before he became wealthy. Though Dunsmuir died before its completion, his widow raised their children there and for many years it was a social centre of the young city of Victoria. The interior of the castle has been beautifully preserved and and is still furnished in the style of the period. Sometime later this summer we'll take a closer look at the treasures inside. Craigdarroch Castle is a National Historic Site of Canada.

Castle in the Air

On Gonzales Hill if you go around behind the Observatory (yesterday's photo) and look over the city towards the northwest this is the view you will see. In the upper left of this photo you can see what looks like a castle with red towers and turrets. It is a castle, Craigdarroch Castle, and we'll have a closer look at it tomorrow.

Craigdarroch Details

Like the Legislative Assembly Buildings, Craigdarroch Castle is an imposing pile of stonework from the outside. But what makes repeated visits a delight are the details, the many lovely objects scattered throughout the interior of the castle. Here's a little sample. Above is a silver tea service. To the left is a portrait of Queen Victoria looking less dour than in many. And to the right is a detail of a silver table centerpiece from the dining room.

Sugar and Spice

What are little girls made of?
What are little girls made of?

Sugar and spice
And everything nice,

That's what little girls are made of. *

---

This is my granddaughter Rosie, who also appears in Monday's photo and other photos in this blog. The occasion was a celebration of the new garden at Craigdarroch Castle when guests were invited to don period costumes.

View from the Top

Last week I posted a series of photos of one of Victoria's more famous landmarks, Craigdarroch Castle. However, I didn't post at that time any photos taken from the castle, especially the lovely little circular room that occupies the topmost tower (see photo on the right). In her later years Mrs. Dunsmuir liked to spend time in this room and the view over Victoria and Saanich is still very attractive though the close surroundings, formerly gardens, are now solidly residential. Above we are looking north towards Victoria's two little mountains, Mount Douglas (left of center) and Mount Tolmie (right of center). Below left is the view looking towards the modern city of Victoria

You Are Invited...

...to the Ross Bay Villa Lawn Party. Above is Ross Bay Villa, one of the few remaining houses in Victoria dating from the 1860s. It is also one of the few that is essentially intact. Ross Bay Villa has been undergoing restoration for some time now under the auspices of The Land Conservancy, a non-profit, charitable land trust that works throughout the province of British Columbia. The Lawn Party is to celebrate the completed restoration of the dining room and will take place from 1 pm until 4 pm on Labour Day Monday, September 6, 2010. Admission is free. House Tour and Cream Tea will be $7 each. Ross Bay Villa is located at 1490 Fairfield Road across from the Ross Bay Cemetery. I'll be there! 63% of the people who kindly voted in yesterday's poll suggested I should go and photograph Craigdarroch Castle again and the result is to the right. I think it was worth the trip. Thank you to everyone who took the time to give me his or her opinion.

One more....

Many thanks to the 25 visitors who participated in yesterday's poll and left comments. This was very helpful. The overwhelming preference (72% at this point) was for the bottom close-up of the castle from the corner rather than the straight-on view from further back. (See yesterday's post) This is the reverse of what I expected since I assumed the inevitable distortions arising from the super-wide angle view would turn most people off. Anyway, here's a third view of Craigdarroch Castle and another question. I like this perhaps better than the two views I posted yesterday except for blown out sky over the right side of the photo. What do you think - is it worth another trip to the castle to shoot this one again under a clear blue sky?

Shoot this one again?
	Yes
	No
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Help!

Canadian Geographic Magazine is having a photo contest for pictures of National Historic Sites, which is one of the reasons this blog has been experiencing a quite a few such photos lately (Fort Rodd Hill and Craigflower Farm to name two). Here's another National Historic Site located in Victoria, Craigdarroch Castle. I went up there yesterday and took photos of its exterior from every different angle. Above and below are the two views I prefer. Please use the poll below to help me decide which is best. Thanks!

Do you prefer the above or the below?
	Above
	Below
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Open for School Groups...heh, heh, heh....

Though nobody lives in Craigdarroch Castle any more, piano music has been heard in the ballroom and the scent of candles lingers in the night air. On winter evenings, a woman in white is sometimes seen in an upper window.

Happy Halloween!

Since you've all been so nice lately...

...I thought I'd just invite you over for supper. Of course, it's nothing special, just the family, so you'll have to take pot luck......and after supper we'll adjourn to the smoking room, at least those of you who are smokers. The gentleman over the window is the patron saint of smoking, Sir Walter Raleigh. He's said to have thrown his cloak down for a queen to walk on - she'd have done the world a great favor if she'd stomped on his pipe instead....And if you'd like to stay the night you're welcome, there's always lots of room....

If wishes were horses, we'd all be riding. So I have to confess, these comfortable looking rooms are not my place. Emboldened by how well the interior shots of the Legislature turned out a few days ago, I thought I'd try some more interiors et voila! These are some of the rooms at Craigdarroch Castle here in Victoria. I posted a photo of the exterior of this castle almost a year ago and since the grounds are currently undergoing extensive excavations and landscaping, I won't post another. Click here to see last year's photo.

Craigdarroch Castle

This 39 room mansion was built in 1890 by Robert Dunsmuir, at that time the richest man in western Canada. Dunsmuir initially made his fortune from coal mines in Nanaimo but later developed the E & N Railroad and many other business ventures. Dunsmuir never got to live in this splendid castle since he died before it was completed. His widow and daughters, however, did occupy it for many years. One of Dunsmuir's sons, James, later became Premier of British Columbia. The castle is open to the public and well worth a visit if you are in Victoria. Click here for more information about the castle and its history.