Dunedin, Olveston House - reliving a time from the past

Intrigued by Dunedin’s obvious appreciation of its history and heritage I decided to join a one-hour tour of Olveston Historic Home which was built at the turn of the 19th Century by a wealthy merchant named David Theomin. David had settled in Dunedin having emigrated from his English homeland.  Guided tours are conducted daily and offer visitors a fascinating insight into both a 19th century merchant family and their lifestyle and residence. On the tour I discovered that David was an active patron for the arts, and particularly loved Japanese collections. This was certainly evident when the tour took us through into the entrance vestibule which houses a remarkable assembly of Japanese weaponry collected by David over the years. The Theomin Family lived in the house until 1966 when upon the death of the daughter Dorothy Olveston was bequeathed to the city of Dunedin. It opened the following year as a museum and I was told that over the intervening years very little had been changed. As I followed my guide through each of the rooms I experienced what was essentially a time capsule to life as a prosperous merchant living in Dunedin in the inter war years. You could almost imagine hearing the bell ringing to summon servants to quarters.

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