After 30 years of owning a house in Washington, D.C., although most of that time was spent living overseas, we finally decided to visit Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, the home of Marjorie Merriweather Post, legendary heiress of General Foods, diplomat, philanthropist and distinguished collector of French and Russian art and jewelry. We had the opportunity to tour her mansion, used not just as a home but as a showcase for her collections, as well as the various gardens on the 25 acre estate. We also saw a special exhibit of some of her absolutely incredible jewelry, where I don’t think people were supposed to take pictures (although no signs posted) but I managed to attempt a few with my cell phone.

This Georgian-style mansion was built for Washington social figures Helen and Henry Parson Erwin in 1925. In 1955 Marjorie Post purchased the estate, then known as Arbremont, and renamed it Hillwood, after her former country estate on Long Island. From 1955 to 1957, Post renovated and expanded the main house.

We didn’t look at the interior in great detail as the many collections of porcelain and fine art were simply overwhelming, plus with my knee hurting I didn’t want to scale this staircase to see the bedrooms, but I did take some pictures of the major downstairs rooms and works of art.

The mansion, posted earlier: