Francis York

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A Scottish Mansion With a Glorious Palm Courtyard

This property is listed for £1,500,000 with Fiona Gormley of Savills.

Tillycorthie House’s central Palm Courtyard has a soaring pitched cantilever style glass roof, filled with tropical greenery.

Functioning as a unique reception hall, the Palm Courtyard is flanked with French doors which connect it to the central corridors on the main floor. 

Built in 1911 for James Rollo Duncan, a Bolivian tin magnate and partner of Penny & Duncan Bolivia, the property has been described as a “bewildering amalgam of the high-tech and the sub-baronial” by architectural writer Ian Shepherd. 

With classic Scots Baronial details throughout, Tillycorthie House is the first mansion in Britain to be entirely constructed of concrete. 

Set in just over 9 acres of countryside in Aberdeenshire, a region known for its natural beauty and as the home of the Queen’s Balmoral Castle, the mansion has been meticulously restored by its current owners with much energy and expense to revive the house to its former glory. 








All of the original ornate fireplaces are fully functional, and there is an abundance of intricate detail in the moulded ceilings and cornice work, especially notable in the ceiling roses. 

Original oak parquet flooring is seen throughout the house, which boasts several grand formal and informal living rooms on the 1st floor, including a Christmas Room, garden room, dining room, and a central bespoke presentation kitchen.

A grand sweeping staircase leads to 11 bedroom suites—but there are also other staircases in the home, like the spiral staircase in the east wing that leads out to a tower and rooftop vista of the surrounding countryside. 

On the ground floor, find ample storage space, a catering kitchen and 3000-bottle wine cellar. 

All photos belong to the listing agency.