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House CJ Rhodes: The Woolsack
Cape Town, Western Cape

Sir Herbert BAKER: Architect

Date:1900
Client:CJ Rhodes
Type:Homestead
Style:Cape Dutch Revival
Status:Extant

On the Groote Schuur estate, Herbert BAKER in 1900 built this house for Cecil RHODES, to house visitors. Rudyard Kipling was a frequent guest here. Built in Cape Dutch revival style, it keeps closer to its prototypes than most of BAKER's work in this style (except for the arcaded atrium between its back wings - now roofed over). It uses plausible holbol gables and good copies of casement windows (though ignoring the gable width). The year before, BAKER had 'restored' Nooitgedacht, and presumably got to know the style more intimately.

[Fransen 2004:104.]


Books that reference House CJ Rhodes: The Woolsack

Baker, Herbert. 1944. Architecture & personalities. London: Country Life. pg b&w photos, 34-35
Fransen, Hans. 2004. The old buildings of the Cape. A survey of extant architecture from before c1910 in the area of Cape Town - Calvinia - Colesberg - Uitenhage. Johannesburg & Cape Town: Jonathan Ball Publishers. pg 104
Greig, Doreen. 1970. Herbert Baker in South Africa. Cape Town: PURNELL. pg 61, 62
Walker, Michael. 2012. Early architects of Cape Town and their buildings (1820 - 1926) with postcard illustrations, The. St James: Michael Walker. pg 91