Let me start with this excerpt from the web site:
Winterthur Museum is filled with historic and decorative objects collected and arranged according to the aesthetic principles of its visionary, Henry Francis du Pont. A passionate collector throughout his life, he transformed his family home into a showplace for objects made and used for centuries, then opened it as a museum to share America’s diverse stories with the public. The collection of more than 90,000 objects includes items ranging from the streamlined, functional furniture produced by the Shakers to opulent masterworks of 18th-century craftsmanship.
The rooms we were able to visit on the 4th and 5th floors of the house were just beautiful and the objects were exquisite. Flowers adorned every room with artful displays and vases of cut flowers. There are several tours you can take that include more of the museum/ home than we saw on our first visit but with your admission comes a tour of two floors either five and six or five and four. The guides were well informed and anxious to answer our questions about the objects. This 175 room home turned museum is cleverly built to obscure the home’s enormous size, 9 floors and nearly 100,000 square feet but the placement of the trees and gardens are such that the most imposing aspect is the beautiful partial views you have framed by trees, lawn and gardens. Remarkable.
Front of the house - the entryway is out of the photo well to the left.
A glimpse of the house from the pool. You would go up about 40 steps to reach the “back” door. It leads to my favorite spot, be sure and tune in tomorrow for that view!
This is all authentic colonial era furnishings, fabrics, and even the walls and fireplaces were saved from old homes originally located in one of the first 13 states.
Music room