The opulent and well-stocked Grand Library of Highclere Castle - one of fifty rooms that remain in tact.
Feng Shui speak, dragons are symbolic of the power and authority of the family.
A pair of terracotta wyverns (two-legged winged dragons), the heraldic emblem of the Carnarvon family, stand guard just by the hallway, acting as sentinels to the house. In
the heraldic emblem of the Carnarvon family, stand guard just by the hallway, acting as sentinels to the house. In Feng Shui speak, dragons are symbolic of the power and authority of the family. T e castle has 200 rooms and those who are fans of Downton Abbey would have recognised some of the beautiful rooms in the series. An ancient building would inevitably be imbued with residual yin energy of past residents lingering in every brick and mortar of the rooms, not to mention the yin chi emanating from all the antiques notably an Egyptian collection which is housed in a museum in the cellar of the castle for public viewing. T e 5th Earl of Carnarvon was famous for fi nancing Howard Carter in his discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings in Egypt in November 1922. It brought both gentlemen fame and some believed misfortune from the ‘curse of the Pharaoh’. Lord Carnarvon died from pneumonia and blood poisoning after accidentally
cutting a mosquito bite on his face while shaving few months after the sensational discovery of the tomb. It was said that on the day he died in Cairo on 5th April 1923, the city was thrown into darkness due to a power failure and his beloved dog Susie, let out an eerie howl in Highclere Castle and dropped dead at exactly the same moment as when the Earl drew his last breath. Most of the treasures from the tomb are in the Cairo Museum. T e exhibition at Highclere is the Earl’s private collection and it is fortunate that the exhibits are confi ned to the cellar of the castle, as relics from a tomb emanate dark energy. But the present young Earl and Countess through their eff ort to bring the castle into the 21st century by allowing the public to view the
The present Lord and Lady Carnavon, on a mission to restore the castle into its original glory.
treasure trove of magnifi cent rooms fi lled with amazing art and artefacts and allowing a fi lm crew into their home would help to refresh the old chi of the castle, creating a balance of yin and yang energy. As we stroll into the grand dining room, the crew is busy rigging up the place for a scene from Downton Abbey. I can’t wait for the third series.
www.high cler e castl e.co.uk Lady Almina And The Real Downton Abbey by the Countess of Carnarvon is now available from major bookstores & from Amazon.
Helen Oon is the author of the Globetrotter Guide to Malaysia and the Wildlife Guide Malaysia (www.newhollandpublishers.com).