Villa Ephrussi: Fantasy on Cap Ferrat

Maurice, 15 years senior to Béatrice, was one of several children sent to such cities as Vienna and Paris, to expand his family’s financial and social horizons – read The Hare with the Amber Eyes: A Hidden Inheritance by Edmund de Waal for a fascinating insight into the Ephrussi family. He certainly fulfilled his mission, by marrying Béatrice his own wealth was added to the Rothschilds’ boundless fortunes. With no children, the couple – particularly Béatrice – were free to devote their time to travelling the world, seeking cultural inspiration and collecting fine works of art, especially Old Masters, porcelain and sculpture.

During a number of family holidays on the Côte d’Azur, Béatrice fell in love with Cap Ferrat. So much so that between 1906 and 1912 she determinedly acquired the prime seven-hectare (17 acre) site on the Cap and began to commission and build her ‘new Eden’. Although the pink palazzo on the hill will fail to score many points with architectural purists, for most visitors today it’s a fabulously eccentric, beguiling and intriguing confection of Venetian, Renaissance and Moorish influences. Inspired by her ocean voyages on the great liner Île de France, the Baroness envisaged a house and garden that would remind her of a vast ship sitting high above the blue waters of the bay. Some 15 architects came and went, attempting to interpret her extraordinary vision for the house and gardens, so she must have been an exacting and demanding client. A visit to the villa will reveal just how successful she was in achieving the creation of her fantasy palace.

Opulent to Intimate

Upon entering the villa, you immediately find yourself standing in the patio couvert, almost as if you were walking into the central atrium of a cruise liner. It’s an impressive space, dominated by two floors of colonnades and arches in striking rose pink marble, that possess obvious Moorish and Italianate influences. High above is a trompe l’oeil ceiling, surrounded on all sides by a minstrels’ gallery where hidden musicians would play to entertain the guests below. This awe-inspiring, dramatic architectural centrepiece was doubtless conceived to make an immediate impression upon visitors and, unsurprisingly, it’s where Béatrice entertained guests at elegant receptions.

Those guests better acquainted with the Baroness would be invited into the Grand Salon, a striking room sumptuously decorated with 18th Century painted wood panelling, originally from the Hôtel de Crillon in Paris. It’s a bright, beautiful room where the views to the azure sea compete for your attention with many eye-catching and charming furnishings, including rare carpets from the Louvre and Versailles, and a whist table which belonged to none other than Marie Antoinette.

As you move through the villa, the mood changes from grand rooms with opulent furnishings and decoration, to the more intimate ambiance of Béatrice’s private apartments. In the boudoir and private bedrooms there’s a cosy feeling, with many personal details to delight the eye – fine antique furniture, much of it sourced from the royal courts and collections of Versailles, set against 18th Century painted panelling and collections of 19th Century Chinese clothing and shoes. The villa also contains one of the world’s finest collections of French porcelain, including vases, figurines, dinner services and commemorative pieces, with many examples by Sèvres and Vincennes.