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THE DRAWING ROOM
At the French doors stands a "bonheur-de-jour", or a writing desk, mounted with ormolu and
porcelain plaques. On either side of the fire place a matched pair of vitrines displaying various
items of porcelain and glass. Behind the door an ebony inlaid credenza with ormolu mounts.
A pair of five branch ormolu and marble candelabra and a black lacquer and ormolu bracket
clock stand on the mantelpiece.
On the walls are displayed several late Victorian oil paintings, including a hand colored print
of the wedding of Edward VII and Alexandria in 1863.
Either side of the large Berlin wool work picture of a hawk are paintings by W. Mitchell,
painted in 1879, Dunstanborough Castle on the Yorkshire coast, left; and Dunthum Castle,
Isle of Skye, Scotland on the right.
Either end of the sofa are a pair of Brazilian rosewood face screens with stipple engravings of
young girls c.1850.
The room where the ladies withdrew after dinner while the men had their port and cigars, is
furnished entirely in ebonised furniture in the French style usually associated with the Paris
Exhibition of 1878, although the vogue of black gilt furniture had been in evidence since
the1860's. After the death of the Queens consort Prince Albert, Queen Victoria had her
furniture ebonised.