Oheka Castle on Long Island, known as the filming location for Taylor Swift's 2014 music video 'Blank Space', will be auctioned on 27 October. Concierge Auctions has been tasked with the sale of the property, which will go to the highest bidder.
Built in 1919 for investment banker and art patron Otto Kahn, the French Renaissance-style residence boasts 127 rooms and covers almost 113,000 square feet. It is considered the second largest private residence ever built in the United States. In addition to its use in Swift's music video, the castle has a centuries-long Hollywood history. Its gardens, for example, served as the fictional Xanadu in Orson Welles' 1941 film 'Citizen Kane'. It also appeared as Boris Kinstner's Shadow Pond estate in 'Royal Pains' and as a Hungarian hunting lodge in the second season of 'Succession'.
History and Restoration
Otto Kahn commissioned the architectural firm Delano & Aldrich to design Oheka Castle in 1919. This was done on the highest point of Cold Spring Harbor, during the height of Long Island's Gold Coast era. The sprawling residence, heavily inspired by French architecture and the spirit of the Jazz Age, originally served both as a private home and as a venue for the opulent parties that characterised that era.
After its time as a private estate ended, the property underwent decades of change and decay before an extensive 40 million dollar restoration was carried out. These measures restored many of the architectural and landscape elements envisioned in the estate's original designs, including the formal gardens and elaborate interiors.
Special Features
One of the most famous areas of the mansion today is the grand staircase, inspired by the Château de Fontainebleau in France. Two sweeping staircases ascend from the main hall under a coffered wooden ceiling, with wrought-iron railings lining the steps to the upper landing. This area was used in several scenes of Swift's music video.
The formal dining room extends through a long, rectangular space with yellow panelled walls and a fireplace. The mansion's ballroom, over 72 feet long with a ceiling height of 24 feet, is particularly suitable for larger receptions and formal events. The restored library features hand-finished 'faux-bois' walls, punctuated by built-in bookshelves and arched window bays. A marble fireplace forms the centrepiece of the room.
Beyond the reception rooms, the mansion includes 34 individually designed guest suites. Outdoors, the formal grounds begin near the villa with flowerbeds and precisely trimmed hedges framing a stone courtyard to the side of the house. From there, the landscaping extends to a long, tree-lined path bordered by tall evergreen plants – another recognisable location from Swift's music video.
The main gardens were originally designed by the Olmsted Brothers, with contributions from landscape architect Beatrix Farrand. During the restoration, nine reflecting pools and three fountains were reconstructed according to the original landscape plans, complemented by gravel paths and sculpted hedges.
- —Location: Huntington, New York
- —Size: 112,895 square feet (approx. 10,488 sq m)
- —Plot size: 23 acres (approx. 9.3 hectares)
- —Guest Suites: 34
- —Special Features: Grand staircase modelled after Château de Fontainebleau, ballroom with 24-foot ceiling height, restored library, nine reflecting pools, three fountains, formal gardens, restaurant and bar, banquet and event spaces, approved development opportunity for 95 luxury flats
