Astolat Dollhouse Castle
Astolat Dollhouse Castle (also known as Astolat Castle) is a museum quality dollhouse officially appraised for $1.1 million and is a one of the finist miniature structures in the world exhibiting a rare combination of sculpture, art, enginerring and detail that sets it apart from anything in existence to date. [1][2] It was construced with the help of artisans from around the world.[3] Few others rank in this category: Queen Mary's Dolls' House which was designed and constructed for Queen Mary in 1924 by Sir Edwin Lutyens, a leading architect of the time. It is on display at Windsor Castle in England.[4] When first put on display it was visited by 1.6 million people in seven months.[5][6] It is approximately 5' tall, contains 16 rooms, and required 4 years to construct. Another is the dollhouse created by American silent film actress Colleen Moore named Fairy Castle. It is 7' tall, has twelve rooms, and required 7 years to construct. When first placed on tour it generated $9 million in revenue over a four year period and would cost $7 million if built today.<refWilliams, Rob (August 2, 2013). "Inside the $7m fairy castle doll's house built by 100 people for a Hollywood film star". The Independent (London).></ref>[7] It is on display at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, Illinois and is visited by an estimated 1.5 million people each year.[8][9][10][11]
The Astolat Dollhouse Castle is handmade and is nine feet tall. It weighs approximately 800 pounds.[12][13] At the time, the museum's curator noted that the primary value of the dollhouse was in the structure itself, which had taken over 6,000 hours to complete before work started on the interior.[14][15] The interior consists of 29 rooms and adjacent areas that contain approximately 10,000 separate interior pieces. The Astolat Dollhouse Castle was acquired by collector Lois Freeman in 1991 who soon after moved it to the Nassau County Museum of Art.[16] Freeman is an avid collector of dollhouses and since her acquisition of the Astolat Dollhouse Castle she has continually upgraded its interiors.[17][18] Astolat has been on display at the Nassau County Museum of Art in Long Island, New York since 2005.[16][19]
History and description
The Astolat Dollhouse Castle was inspired by Alfred Tennyson's poetry about the Lady of the Lake and created between 1974 and 1987 by master miniaturist Elaine Diehl. In addition to its 9-feet height, it has 29 rooms, hallways, corridors, sitting areas, and windows. The Colleen Moore fairy Castle Dollhouse and the Astolat Dollhouse Castle were designed with fixed contiguous exterior walls to create a three-dimensional viewing effect.[5][14]
Astolat was built over a thirteen year period. The exterior took a year to sculpt to the final finish. The interiors and adjoining areas were each constructed to the highest standards of that time.[14] Astolat Dollhouse Castle was initially displayed in Diehl's museum shop in Sedona, Arizona until her retirement in 1996. It was a popular tourist attraction which drew people from around the world.[20][21]
The Dollhouse Castle's namesake was inspired by the fantasy castle “Astolat” in Alfred Tennyson’s poem Lady of the Lake.[22] Astolat Castle has a copper roof and structural wood walls that are finished on the exterior with papier-mâché and then sculpted to a rough faux stone finish. Some of these exterior wall panels are fixed to create a 3-dimensional effect when viewer's peer into the Castle. Other walls can be opened or removed for group viewing.[23] The structure was built to a 25.4 mm to 304.8 mm scale (one inch to one foot) (1:12) scale.
Layout and floor plan
Astolat Dollhouse Castle consists of seven levels, stairways, hallways, and was created for 360 degree viewing. As with the Colleen Moore dollhouse certain exterior walls are fixed to create a 3-D viewing experience. The basement level consists of the Knights Of Columbus room, wine cellar, kitchens, and the armory. The main floor contains the entrance foyer, main stairway, and butler's closet. Next level up contains the formal living room, dining room, and music room and its audience balcony. The fourth level contains the private library containing duelling pistols,a library of miniature books, fireplace, miniature daguerreotypes, and the oil painting display area. Fifth level contains the sleeping quarters. Sixth floor contains the grand ballroom, musician's alcove, bar area and sitting rooms. Wizards's tower is on the top level and contains hand painted zodiac signs, telescope, observatory and astronomical depictions. [23]
Interior decoration
The interior spaces include miniature fittings and furniture which are antique, collectible, or hand-crafted. Other furnishings, and ancillary art includes sculptures, original oil paintings, portrait miniatures, hand sewn tapestries, carved wood moldings, chandeliers, sconces, framed mirrors, and accessories.[24] These include miniature inlaid marble bathrooms, parquet floors, gold chandeliers, hand etched wood panels, and pieces made of gold.[22] Most of the interior furnishings and artwork are original and were purchased at auctions from private collectors, or commissioned from known miniaturists and artisans. Such artists include Eric Pearson, George Becker, Warren Dick, Laurel Coulon, Mary McGrath, among others.[14] The lighting features fully illuminate all areas of Astolat and separate day and night-time lighting systems automatically adjust based on the time of day.[22]
Other notable dollhouses
Other notable dollhouses of such quality include Titania's Palace, which is on display in Denmark, Tara's Palace, which is on display in Ireland at the Tara's Palace Museum of Childhood in Powerscourt and the Stettheimer dollhouse in New York City which is primarily known for its original miniature artwork.
References
- ^ http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9502E3D6133FF932A05754C0A9639C8B63
- ^ http://www.pinterest.com/mactiremisneach/doll-houses/
- ^ http://www.nassaumuseum.com/development/children.php
- ^ Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House | Royal Collection Trust
- ^ http://www.believermag.com/issues/201011/?read=article_waclawiak
- ^ The Believer - Safe As Houses
- ^ http://www.pinterest.com/woodhavenlakes5/colleen-moores-7-million-fairy-castle-dollhouse/
- ^ http://www.msichicago.org/whats-here/exhibits/fairycastle/ Fairy Castle Exhibit
- ^ http://www.chicagoparent.com/magazines/web-only/2013-december/fairy-castle
- ^ http://www.pinterest.com/francine43/colleen-moore-s-doll-house-museum-of-science-and-i/
- ^ http://www.msichicago.org/whats-here/exhibits/fairycastle/history-of-the-fairy-castle/
- ^ "pinterest- pinterest.com".
- ^ "FOOTLIGHTS - NYTimes.com".
- ^ a b c Shattuck, Kathryn (2005-07-31). "FOOTLIGHTS - NYTimes.com". New York Times. Retrieved 2013-08-29.
- ^ Kaliski, Mary. "Astolat." Miniature Collector Aug. 2008: 40-43.
- ^ a b http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9502E3D6133FF932A05754C0A9639C8B63
- ^ Toy Buildings 1880 to 1980 Authors Patty Cooper and Dian Zillner. A book for Collectors. Schiffer Publishing Limited 4880 Lower Valley Road, Atglen, PA 19310 USA, Copyright 2000. ISBN 0-7643-1011-9 Various Pages 48 photo credits.
- ^ Book entitled: Antique and Collectible Dollhouses and Their Furnishings. by Dian Zillner and Patty Cooper. Schiffer Publishing Limited 4880 Lower Valley Road, Atglen, PA 19310 USA, Copyright 1998 ISBN 0-7643-0120-9 (Various Pages 51 photo credits).
- ^ http://nassaumuseum.org/default.php
- ^ Pieper, Monica (1990-03-11). "HER HOBBY HAS BECOME AN OBSESSION - The Prescott Courier". news.google.com. Retrieved 2013-08-29.
- ^ "January 2009 | MINIATURES IN DOLLHOUSE SCALES (MIDS)". Teammids.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2013-08-28.
- ^ a b c "Tee Ridder Miniatures Museum". Studio-Online. 2007-10-09. Retrieved 2013-08-29.
- ^ a b "www.cdhm.org 2008 CDHM Featured Collector's Corner". Cdhm.org. Retrieved 2013-08-28.
- ^ Sybil, Harp. Treasures in Miniature: Elaine Diehl's 'Astolat'. Waukesha: Kalmbach Publishing Co, 1993