Larnach Castle · The Man Who Built and Carved It Himself

Larnach Castle, one of New Zealand’s only castles, stands on the hills of the peninsula at Dunedin. A businessman built it for his wife: more than twenty rooms, hand-carved ceilings and stairways, workmen brought in from all over Europe.

The first child fell ill and died soon after birth, and the wife died soon after that. Of every mistress of the house since, it is said that she did not live past that age. Several owners took the castle on in turn, and the furnishings have always been kept.

Today it also runs as a lodge. Guests say the wood creaks in the middle of the night.

Haunted Ruins / Dunedin · New Zealand / 1871