Description of the attraction
Elizabeth Bay Homes is a historic property located in the suburbs of Sydney. Built between 1835 and 1839 in the English Empire style, it was known as the "finest home in the colony". Once it was surrounded by an amazingly beautiful garden of 22 hectares, but for a long time, instead of green spaces, the house-museum has surrounded a densely populated urban area. Today, Elizabeth Bay Manor is a magnificent example of Australian colonial architecture, best known for its main oval hall with a domed lamp tower and staircase.
The estate was built for the Secretary of the New South Wales Colony, Alexander MacLay, in the second quarter of the 19th century. The architect of the project is unknown - it is assumed that it could be John Verge, but there is no reliable evidence of this. The facade of the house is quite simple due to the fact that the house itself is unfinished: the construction of most of the colonial houses of the late 1830s was not completed due to the outbreak of the economic depression. Interestingly, the central axis of the house is in line with the winter solstice point. There are no documents left to explain this feature, but this is hardly a coincidence.
The interior of the manor house, restored from records, reflects the way of life of the McLay family and generally gives an idea of the life of Sydney in the early 19th century. In the large library you can see a small collection of insects that belonged to Alexander Maclay himself - he was a famous entomologist. There is also a collection of 19th century furniture from Sydney and Tasmania.
Near the estate there is a small grotto with a stone wall and steps, surrounded by several trees - this is all that remains of the once vast garden, in which exotic plants from the McLay collection grew, there was a greenhouse and a vegetable garden.
