Leighton House

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  • Address
    12 Holland Park Rd, Kensington, W14 8LZ
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  • Phone
    7602 3316
  • Website
  • Transport
    underground rail: High Street Kensington
  • Wed-Mon 11:00 - 17:30

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Lonely Planet review

Leighton House sits on a quiet street near Holland Park, like a secret beauty that has to be sought out and appreciated. Designed in 1866 by George Aitchison, this was the home of Lord Leighton (1830-96), a painter belonging to the Olympian movement.

The ground floor is decorated in an Arabic style, with the exquisite Arab Hall added in 1879 and densely covered with blue and green tiles from Rhodes, Cairo, Damascus and Iznik (Turkey) and a fountain tinkling away in the centre. Even the wooden latticework of the windows and gallery was brought from Damascus. The house contains notable pre-Raphaelite paintings by Burne-Jones, Watts, Millais and Lord Leighton himself. Restoration of the back garden has returned it to its Victorian splendour - as has work on the stairwell and upstairs rooms.