In Recoleta and on one of the most exclusive and expensive avenues of Buenos Aires hides one of the best kept secrets of the city, a mansion of almost 3,000 square meters that combines history, mystery and luxury in equal parts. It is known as the Ghost House of Recoleta. We tell you why you will never be able to visit it.
This is the Ghost House of Recoleta, the largest palace of the 19th century with a garden by Carlos Thays that costs millions to maintain and that you will never visit.
In Recoleta there is a large and enigmatic 19th century palace. If you have ever passed by the corner of Alvear Avenue and Rodriguez Peña, you must have been struck by the house that right on that corner and with its shutters completely closed has an ombu tree so big that its roots are sticking out through the fence that encloses this mansion.
This palace next to the Duhau Palace, one of the most expensive 5 star hotels in Buenos Aires, is known by many as the Ghost House of Recoleta, but it actually has a name.
Originally this mansion was known as the Hume Mansion as this palace was built around 1890 by Alexander Hume, an iron entrepreneur who played a central role in the development of the Argentine railroad system. Hume had all the materials to build this palace in the middle of Recoleta brought from Scotland by ship.
At the time it was a Victorian style residence, unique in the country, and today it is the only palace of the 19th century with 3000 square meters. The mansion was conceived as a two-story manor house, with an indoor swimming pool, servants’ quarters on the top floor and luxurious details that were rare at the time.
La Casa Fantasma de Recoleta: A house with a secret garden by Carlos Thays, the creator of the Botanical Garden of Buenos Aires.
In 1914, the palace was sold to the Álzaga family, but its passage was brief. In 1920, the building changed hands again and was acquired by Alberto Duhau, while his brother, Luis Duhau, bought the property next door, which we know today as the Duhau Palace at the Park Hyatt.
The Duhau family completely renovated the interior and made absolute changes to the Hume family’s influence: they replaced the Victorian Scottish furniture with French-style décor. Years later, Susana Duhau, daughter of Alberto Duhau, married John Walter Maguire and they had María Susana Maguire Duhau de Biocca, the current owner and sole inhabitant of the house.
One of the great treasures hidden in this palace in Recoleta is its garden, which was designed by the landscaper Carlos Thays, responsible for most of the green spaces in Buenos Aires, including the Botanical Garden. In the case of the Casa Fantasma, it is a private park of more than one hectare, huge and totally inaccessible to the public.
Why you will never be able to visit this mysterious mansion
The house remains closed and María Susana Maguire Duhau de Biocca never gave interviews, nor did she accept proposals from the media, companies or producers to open the doors of the palace, much less give guided tours. Some say that its maintenance costs millions of pesos per month (an estimated 30,000 dollars per month) and some have dared to estimate it at more than 7 million dollars.
In a city and especially in a neighborhood of Buenos Aires where every square meter is disputed at the price of gold, the Phantom House of Recoleta is a monument but also a fascinating property. If you were the owner of this impressive mansion and urban palace, what would you do with it? Would you sell it, rent it or open it to the public with guided tours so that everyone can get to know it?