Tanglewood Conservatories’ Historic Replicas

A Gardener's Dream Greenhouse: A superb rendition of the iconic Victorian-era conservatory, the design of this fully functional greenhouse is based upon the renowned Conservatory of Flowers in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park.

A Gardener's Dream Greenhouse: A view from the inside of the Victorian-era conservatory.

A Gardener's Dream Greenhouse: The owners became enamored of the historic structure and wanted to recreate a greenhouse that would be true to its historic heritage.

A Gardener's Dream Greenhouse: The authenticity of the conservatory was to be paramount — in every detail — and the structure would need to function as a complete working greenhouse as well.

Copper Conservatory Inspired by the Biltmore Estate: Another of the many interesting conservatory projects Tanglewood is working on right now is a large conservatory, or it might be more of an orangerie, that is fashioned after the beautiful conservatory at the Biltmore Estate in Ashville, North Carolina. Large, ornately-moulded mahogany beams are being constructed and will be used to support the roof structure, as in the Biltmore conservatory.

Copper Conservatory Inspired by the Biltmore Estate: The copper cupola for mahogany conservatory roof lantern takes shape. Watch a video about the construction process on Tanglewood's website.

Exotic Southern Garden Folly: This moorish melancoly was created featuring a copper dome made of diamond shaped "shingles" to compose an impressive bronze cabana.

Exotic Southern Garden Folly: The clients were looking for an exotic turn-of-the-century replica to host gatherings beneath a custom Moorish melancholy.

Exotic Southern Garden Folly: Each piece was made by hand and placed by Tanglewood craftsmen.

Exotic Southern Garden Folly: A view of the surrounding gardens.

Exotic Southern Garden Folly: The pond's centerpiece.

Exotic Southern Garden Folly: A fountain outside the conservatory.

Antique Style Greenhouse: This recently constructed Palm House was inspired by the great conservatories and greenhouses of yesteryear.

Antique Style Greenhouse: Designed to house twenty-foot tall trees, the decoratively forged steel structure and curving rooflines hearken back to that imaginative era.

Antique Style Greenhouse: Tanglewood was inspired by the Druid Hill Conservatory (officially known as the Howard Peter Rawlings Conservatory and Botanic Gardens), a lovely architectural relic in from the Victorian era in Baltimore.

Antique Style Greenhouse: Close-up of the conservatory's window design.

A Celebration of Steel and Glass: This unique swimming pool enclosure is a grand celebration of structure — as were the magnificent conservatories of the past.

A Celebration of Steel and Glass: Cast iron columns on the interior bear fanciful steel beams which hold in place its delicate skin of glass.

A Celebration of Steel and Glass: Three years in the making, the design concept evolved from the interplay of steel, stone and glass seen at the magnificent glass conservatory at Syon Park in London.

A Celebration of Steel and Glass: The crowning glory of Syon Park's gardens is the Great Conservatory. The 3rd Duke of Northumberland commissioned Charles Fowler to build a new conservatory in 1826, the first of its kind to be built out of gunmetal, Bath stone and glass. It was originally designed to act as a show house for the Duke's exotic plants and inspired Joseph Paxton in his designs for the Crystal Palace.

This distinctive custom conservatory design features a central octagonal gallery seamlessly integrated with single-slope roofs on either side. The unique round shape and design was drawn from the Mark Twain conservatory, built in 1874 near Hartford, Connecticut.

“From the beginning, greenhouses and conservatories have blurred the very lines they’ve drawn. They extend a home into nature while keeping that selfsame nature at bay, delivering all the beauty of the outdoors and all the comforts of home.“ — Alan Stein, founder of Tanglewood Conservatories.