It’s all this and Flora too
Whoever buys this Palos Verdes bluff estate had better like Flora, because she could be here for the long haul. She weighs 240 pounds and would be a challenge to move.
Flora, a large marble bust carved in France during the 1700s, is among the artwork that’s part and parcel of this 2002 estate. Another is a courtyard statue that the home seller had carved to look like one in a Naples museum.
The Italian-style villa is filled with unusual things from the past, including the 5-inch-thick front door as well as the Tuscan roof tiles, which were handmade in the 1850s. There are solid-bronze French doors, reclaimed farmhouse beams and limestone exterior walls from Vicenza in northern Italy.
Terra-cotta blocks -- 300 years old and from the South of France -- were used for exterior paving blocks. Some of them bear fingerprints from when they were pressed into molds.
Interior walls are plaster with a Venetian finish, and the wood floors are either American walnut or imported Italian parquet. There are also some stone floors.
About this house: Considerable attention was given to fine finishes, but the most outstanding feature is the head-on ocean view. There is also a sweeping view of the city.
Asking price: $12 million
Size: There are five bedrooms and nine bathrooms in 10,000 square feet, and the house is on close to an acre.
Features: The home also has verandas, terraces, a pool and a lawn. Other features are a family room, library, breakfast area and elevator.
Where: Palos Verdes Estates
Listing agent: Gary Gold, Hilton & Hyland, Beverly Hills, (310) 858-5411.
To submit a candidate for Home of the Week, please send color interior and exterior photos on a CD and a description of the house, including what makes the property unusual, to Ruth Ryon, Real Estate Section, Los Angeles Times, 202 W. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90012; or e-mail homeoftheweek@latimes.com.
