Let’s face it, the poor old ostrich is not a pretty bird; it’s ungainly, can’t fly and, as someone once described it, ‘one of nature’s failed experiments’. Today in South Africa, they are even known somewhat amusingly as ‘Karoo sock puppets’. Think about it.
However, as we know, its feathers are really superb and there were those who saw the potential. In the Oudtshoorn area, suddenly a lot of breeders and farmers became very rich and began to look for ways to exhibit their wealth. One of the areas in which they went to town, so to speak, was housing; a goodly number of them lavished a great deal of money on status symbols and their opulent homes became known as ‘Ostrich Feather Palaces’. As can be seen in the preceding images, these were often elaborate affairs which, externally at least and in no way wishing to be rude, have an almost fairytale quality about them. Quite a number of these architecturally remarkable properties still survive to this day in the Oudtshoorn and Little Karoo region of Western Cape Province and offer an insight to the sort of money that was being made from the humble ostrich back in Edwardian times, and the elegant lifestyle that the feather breeders were able to enjoy as a result. Responsible for a number of these ‘Palaces’ during his six years as a private architect in the area, was Charles Bullock, an English architect who, having arrived in the country in 1890 at the age of 20, must also have done exceedingly well from these elaborate and juicy commissions. Having set up in private practice, Bullock’s work on these types of properties began in 1903 with the interiors typically featuring cast iron fireplaces with Art Nouveau tile surrounds, highly decorated ceilings, cornices and dados together with period stained glass. Other architects involved in a number of these types of ornate properties in the area were George Wallace and J.E. Vixeboxes.
A mansion in Oudtshoorn built by a Jewish feather dealer. The property is still standing but has lost its beautiful verandah and appearance. (Image by kind permission of the C.P. Nel Museum, Oudtshoorn, South Africa.)
The ‘Towers’ mansion – built in 1903 by feather baron G.C. Olivier and sadly demolished in 1966 to make way for a school. (Image by kind permission of the C.P. Nel Museum, Oudtshoorn, South Africa.)
The wonderfully preserved Mimosa Lodge – originally built for the Jewish feather merchant R. Sladowski. Now owned by the Jonkers family. (Image by kind permission of the C.P. Nel Museum, Oudtshoorn, South Africa.)
A typical example of one of architect Charles Bullock’s ornate ‘Feather Palace’ homes – designed and built during the Edwardian craze for feathers. (Image by kind permission of the C.P. Nel Museum, Oudtshoorn, South Africa.)
Since their original construction and a good deal of renovation work in more recent times, a number of these amazing buildings have been declared National Monuments (and rightly so) with one of them – the magnificent old Boys High School building now housing the superb C.P. Nel Museum.