Manderston House

Manderston is the supreme country vacation rental house of Edwardian Scotland; the swan-song of its era. A holiday travel house rental on which no expense was spared with opulent staterooms, the only silver-staircase in the world and extensive "downstairs" domestic quarters. This lovely vacation rental house stands in 56 acres of formal gardens, with magnificent stables and stunning marble dairy. John Kinross the architect, when enquiring how large his budget was, was told that money was no object. It was built for Sir James Miller who married the Honourable Eveline Curzon, daughter of Lord Scarsdale, head of one of the oldest families in the country. The House and Gardens are open to the public, and all enquiries are most welcome, especially for Open Days, Accommodation, Dining and Events and Corporate Days.

The Outer Hall
The oval entrance hall is the first of the series of classical revival rooms created for Sir James by John Kinross from 1890-1905. On either side of the front door, the pair of child’s sledging seats are part of a set bought in Russia by Sir James’s father, who collected all sorts of Russian objects whilst a merchant and diplomat in St. Petersburg in the mid-nineteenth century.

The Vestibule
The vaulted cloakroom to the right is screened from the dining-room ante-room by a pair of silver-plated grilles, set in arches, on panels of translucent apricot alabaster from Derbyshire, which glow in warm shades when the sun is behind them and of which the architect, John Kinross, was particularly proud.

The Ante-room to the Dining Room
On the wall, the stucco relief of Diana, Roman goddess of hunting (one of Sir James’s passions), echoes a similar one outside above the gunroom door. To balance the relief, Kinross put in two doors, one of these leads to the back stairs, the other opens beautifully, but leads nowhere; one of several architectural confidence tricks at Manderston. The ceiling is inspired by the one in the entrance hall at Syon House built by Robert Adam, and the inlaid marble floor reflects its pattern.

The Dining Room
This was the last room to be completed when the house was finished in 1905 and its ceiling, in high relief, is the most ambitious of all those in the house. In the centre is Mars, Roman god of war (Sir James had fought in South Africa), with dancing muses and vase patterns in the lozenges that radiate around him. This is the only room on the ground floor which has been re-decorated since the house was rebuilt.

The door in the recess leads into the original serving room where food, carried some distance from the kitchen, was kept hot; now it is the family kitchen. The urns flanking the recess are two knife-holders actually made by Robert Adam and brought to the house by Major Bailie, Lord Palmer’s grandfather. On the sideboard and mantelpiece stands part of a collection of Blue John urns, obelisks and candelabra. Blue John is a very rare semi-precious stone mined only in Derbyshire.

The new Lady Miller was probably inspired to collect it by the large collection that already existed at her father’s house, Kedleston. It is the largest private collection of Blue John (called after its ‘bleujaune’ colouring) in Scotland. The Edwardian long-case clock was made by Andrew Padbery of Bishops Waltham of mahogany inlaid with satinwood.

The mahogany dining-room table extends to seat twenty-four on the Chippendale chairs, sixteen of which are reproduction, all of which were restored in 2006/2007. The pictures at the north end are not family ancestors, but were bought to give that impression! The silver on the table was presented to Sir William Miller by his constituency members from Leith in 1860. The pictures on either side of the door are by Gian Paolo Panini. Part of the collection of Blue John Marble.