Virginia Robinson Gardens


The Virginia Robinson Gardens are the period landscape, historic mansion, and botanical gardens located at the Virginia Robinson Estate in Beverly Hills, California, United States.

History

The Virginia Robinson Gardens is the earliest estate in Beverly Hills, California. It was the private residence of Virginia Dryden Robinson and Harry Winchester Robinson, heir to J. W. Robinson's Dept. Store.
The main house was designed in 1911 by architect Nathaniel Dryden, who was Virginia's father, in a Beaux Arts style. The residence is furnished with antiques and artifacts collected from around the world.
The Renaissance Revival pool pavilion was built in 1924 and is modeled after the Villa Pisani in the Tuscan region of Italy. Decorative panels of sgraffito ornamentation adorn the Roman arches at the entry to the pavilion's. The pavilion overlooks a long pool with mosaic tile wainscoting.

Gardens

The Virginia Robinson Gardens range in style and plant type from Italian Renaissance Mediterranean to Tropical Oceanea. The estate has five distinctive gardens:
The Robinson Gardens are managed by the County of Los Angeles and open to the public for docent tours by advanced reservation only. The Friends of Virginia Robinson Gardens support this landmark. It was listed in 1978 on the National Register of Historic Places. It is also a state listed California Point of Historical Interest, and on the City of Beverly Hills Local Register of Historic Properties.