The Breakers- Newport, RI

At 70 rooms and 62,482 square feet, The Breakers is the largest summer cottage in Newport. It is also the busiest, so if you don’t like crowds, visit off season. Way off season if you want the property to yourself, which is the best way to take in the amazing architectural details and artwork. Sure, the gardens won’t be in bloom, but having seen the sea of people entering the estate in the summer, you won’t mind.

Built by Cornelius Vanderbilt II, grandson of New York Central Railroad founder Commodore Vanderbilt, The Breakers exemplifies Gilded Age artistry and excess. Built in just two years in 1893, the substantial stone structure replaced an earlier wood framed mansion that was destroyed by fire in 1892. Designed by noted society architect Richard Morris Hunt, the new home was constructed of brick, steel and stone to render it virtually fireproof.

Built in the Italian Renaissance style, with an enclosed Great Hall standing in for a courtyard, The Breakers showcases what can be achieved with an unlimited budget. Boasting 70 rooms, including 15 bedrooms, and 20 bathrooms, it was certainly a spacious summer retreat. Imported marble from Italy and Africa covered the floor and walls, with elaborate French influenced interior design work provided by celebrity stylist Jules Allard.

In the Dining Room twin Baccarat crystal chandeliers illuminate layers of intricate details, including carved moldings and a large ceiling mural depicting the Goddess Aurora ushering in the day on a chariot pulled by a team of white horses. Just doors down, the Billiards room offered a cool, relaxing retreat, featuring floor to ceiling book matched marble, alabaster arches, and Tiffany wall sconces.

Across the Great Hall from the Dining Room are some of the mansions most magnificent spaces. The Music Room is an archetypal Gilded Age entertaining space, with layers of luxurious materials and not a single surface left unadorned. The adjacent Library boasts Circassian walnut paneling, a painted coffered ceiling, and a 500 year old stone fireplace salvaged from a French Chateau.

Upstairs, the rooms were designed by Ogden Codman, Jr., in a slightly more subdued fashion, based on 18th century French design principles. In the master bath, both regular and salt water was available on tap; here, the substantial tub was expertly carved out of a single block of marble.

In the back of the house, the stone and tile Upper Loggia, used by the family as an open air living room, offers excellent views of both the Atlantic Ocean and the Great Lawn below. In addition to the Great Lawn, which ran from the house to the Cliff Walk, the estate featured elaborate formal gardens designed by Ernest Bowditch, as well as a collection of specimen trees.

Perhaps the most spectacular second floor feature is the large stained glass skylight situated above the Grand Staircase, designed by renowned artist John La Farge. Hanging in the space below, a 1619 Flemish tapestry, featuring a scene from the life of Alexander the Great. The third floor, originally housing 33 servant’s rooms, was still seasonally occupied by Vanderbilt relatives until very recently, when it was determined the outmoded systems were unsafe for residential use. At least that is the official explanation for their departure; others claim the family’s opposition to the new visitor’s center lead to the decision.

Sadly, Cornelius Vanderbilt only spent one season at The Breakers before suffering a massive stroke. His widow continued to summer at the house until her death in 1934, at which time the estate was left to her daughter Countess Gladys Széchenyi. Finding it hard to maintain the residence, in 1948 she leased the estate to the Newport Preservation Society for $1 per year. In 1972, the Society purchased the property for $365,000, from Glady’s daughter, which included the home and much of its contents, sparing them from the auction block.

Taken as a whole, The Breakers is a well preserved window into a rarefied past, where appearance was paramount. Albeit busy, it’s a fascinating study of extreme architecture on a scale not likely to be built again.