All over the world there are so many amazing examples of antique door hardware, and you’d be surprised how fun searching for unique pieces can be. As a door hardware expert, I end up noticing different styles of door hardware wherever I go. For example, we took a family vacation to beautiful Lake Tahoe with the kids a little while ago. During our stay, we visited an incredible old castle called Vikingsholm, located at Emerald Bay on the lake’s southwest shore. This estate had some fascinating history, and of course, I was curious to see the architecture and door hardware they had there. We were very pleased with our visit and recommend a tour if you're ever in the area! But assuming you've not been to Vikingsholm before, I’ll share a bit about its history and the antique hardware that can be found on the premise.
A Brief History of Vikingsholm
Vikingsholm was a summer home built in 1929 by Lora Josephine Knight. She had purchased a large chunk of land at Emerald Bay (including Fannette Island) for $250,000 – around 3.5 million dollars today! The home was built out of materials found locally at Lake Tahoe. Granite stones for the foundation and outer walls were quarried on site, and the timber for the structure was cut from that area too. The foundation was laid in 1928 and the rest of the building was completed the following summer. She had hired 200 craftsmen to complete the job, and they lived in temporary barracks while they built the home. Vikingsholm was crafted to replicate Scandinavian structures from the 11th century.
The workmanship in this place was amazing. Some of the more memorable features are the wood carvings on the structure of the home, paintings on the ceilings and walls, and hand-crafted furniture. Various parts of the heavy timber construction were done with tightly fitting joinery with no nails or pegs – consistent with the methods used in 11th-century Sweden.
Antique Door Hardware
Check out the door hardware from the main entrance. The handle on the top left draws the latch. The little face on the top of the lock is attached to a pin that drops down in the lock – I couldn't tell what the function of that was. There’s also a keyhole at the bottom to lock or unlock.
All of the guest bedrooms had these sweet-looking locks imported from Sweden. The locksets have a latch that can be opened from the inside, but can only be locked from the outside. The idea of security at the time was that the hostess would lock all of the guests into their rooms at night before locking herself into her room. This doesn’t seem too safe by today's standards, but I guess this method worked pretty well at the time.
All of the doors had cool old strap hinges on them, which were intricately detailed. These hinges, along with the fireplace screens and metal light fixtures, were forged by hand on-site.
Today, Vikingsholm is owned by the State of California, so it’s been very well preserved. The detail on this place was unbelievable, so if you’re interested in antique door hardware reproductions and happen to be vacationing in California, you should definitely stop by for a visit. And if you’re looking for other things to do while you’re in the area, I recommend making the short hike to Eagle Falls, playing at the sandy beach, or renting a kayak right there at Emerald Bay.