Alexandra Park: Home of Millennium Gate founder

Home and Garden

Emily and Rodney Cook Jr. built this stately home, modeled on Highgrove, the country home of Britain's Prince Charles, in 1990. Cook, an internationally recognized advocate for classical architecture, is the impresario of the Millennium Gate arch dedicated in Midtown's Atlantic Station on July 4. The home, known as Alexandra Park, reflects Cook's passion for ancient form. See photos of the home.

By JULIE HAIRSTON: Emily and Rodney Cook Jr. built this stately home, modeled on Highgrove, the country home of Britain's Prince Charles, in 1990 after purchasing 60 wooded acres from the late Eleanor McDonald Storza's estate. Cook, an internationally recognized advocate for classical architecture, is the impresario of the Millennium Gate arch dedicated in Midtown's Atlantic Station on July 4. The home, known as Alexandra Park, reflects Cook's passion for ancient form.

The model for Prince Charles' gift to the city of Atlanta commemorating the 1996 Olympic Games -- the statue at Pershing Point -- now stands near the entrance to the grounds of Alexandra Park. Cook shares his enthusiasm for classic architecture and historic preservation with Britain's royal family.

This obelisk on the grounds was a gift from Britain's Princess Anne. Standing in a grove facing the house, it was placed during the princess's first visit to Alexandra Park.

The estate includes a stable, riding ring and guest quarters as well as these two water features.

This reverent chapel flanks the front foyer. The chairs once graced the ballroom of the Asa Candler home. Antique Russian artworks grace the altar and side tables. Cook has been a tireless advocate for church restoration in Russia. The chapel, the house and the stables were blessed by an American Russian Orthodox priest with a full choir. "Essentially, they blessed every inch of the property," Cook said.

A fisheye mirror in a sunburst frame tops the ornate vintage Madonna that numbers among Cook's Russian artifacts.

From the front foyer, this view of the soaring spiral staircase in the Cook home showcases its celebration of classic form and symmetry.

Chess takes on a decidedly human dimension with this set on display in the Cook home.

The staircase winds through the center of the home. Seen here on the second floor, the stairs ascend among genteel, arched doorways leading to the wings that contain the home's living areas. Ornate cornice work accentuates the high ceilings.

A pair of 17th-century Italian chinoiserie cabinets flank the spiral staircase. This chest, a family heirloom, will be displayed in the Rhodes Robinson Room at the Millenium Gate.

Delicate color and fine detail animate the antique Chinese panels displayed at the front of the rotunda. These panels once decorated the apartment of Emily Cook's father, James D. Robinson III, a former CEO of American Express who lived on New York's Fifth Avenue.

On one side of the rotunda, the formal living room displays imposing portraits of the Cook family and their ancestors along with luminous landscapes and vintage furniture. Cook describes the home's decor as a special blend of heirlooms. "The more American things are from my side of the family. The more Italian things are from Emily's," he said. "They seem to mix well together."

The arched doorway behind the Cook family in this portrait matches those on either side of the wall where it is displayed. With its repeating columns and climbing stairs, the portrait surrounds the family appropriately amid a classical motif.

Guttae-studded cornice work throughout the home was modeled on the eaves of the Greek Parthenon. The columns that rise through the rotunda also mimic Parthenon supports.

The female figures flanking the fireplace are caryatids, architectural supports modeled on those found at the Acropolis. Some of the earliest known examples of these figures date to the sixth century.

At the top of the caryatid support, the column is carved to mimic a basket, which maidens in ancient Greece once balanced on their heads during ceremonies honoring the goddess Artemis.

This cozy library opens off the living room. Its gracefully scalloped shelves offer ample room for books and the intimate fireplace invites a leisurely afternoon of browsing. The painting over the fireplace depicts the French Princess de Conti. The library also contains a number of antique maps, another of Cook's particular preoccupations, and a bust of George Plimpton, "a great man of American letters," Cook said.

A lute, an ancient instrument that figures prominently in Renaissance and Baroque music, rests next to the fireplace in the library.

The vivid dining room decor includes a barrel ceiling, an antique Russian chandelier and a dining table from Robinson's Fifth Avenue apartment in New York. The paintings on the far wall are studies of Venice by Alan Dodd, a British artist.

Graceful nymphs cavort around this clock on display in the dining room.

The brilliant red of the dining room walls makes the details of this bronze sculpture stand out in bold relief.

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By JULIE HAIRSTON: Emily and Rodney Cook Jr. built this stately home, modeled on Highgrove, the country home of Britain's Prince Charles, in 1990 after purchasing 60 wooded acres from the late Eleanor McDonald Storza's estate. Cook, an internationally recognized advocate for classical architecture, is the impresario of the Millennium Gate arch dedicated in Midtown's Atlantic Station on July 4. The home, known as Alexandra Park, reflects Cook's passion for ancient form.

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