Golden Gates And Attached Walls At Elvaston Castle

The Golden Gates and attached walls at Elvaston Castle are 18th-century gates that were re-erected in the mid-19th century for the Earl of Harrington by his gardener, William Barron. The gates are made of painted iron and are accompanied by mid-19th century walls, featuring marble-clad piers and ashlar walls.

The central large pair of gates is flanked by railings that end in large square piers, with curved walls attached to the far side. The gates have rails grouped in bunches of three, with the central rail topped by a large arrowhead finial. Each gate features two decorative scrolled wrought iron panels, and there are similar smaller panels on the open square posts beside the gates, each topped by a lantern on scrolled feet.

Above the gates, between the posts, is an ornate overthrow with a coronet finial and a central circle inscribed with 'H H and Deo et Rege'. The railings on either side rest on a stone plinth and include small gates beside the main gate posts. The base of the railings has a row of upright flame finials, while near the top, there is a double row of upright and inverted flame finials, with arrowhead finials above each rail.

At either end, large marble-clad piers are topped with large stone statues, and attached to the far side of each pier are curved walls with deep tapering plinths and ridgeback copings, along with small piers at regular intervals featuring cruciform-shaped ridgeback coping stones. These gates were erected during the creation of the lavish gardens designed by William Barron between 1830 and 1860, which are listed in the Derbyshire Historic Gardens Register at Grade II*. The gates are reputed to have belonged to Napoleon and were originally located in Paris.