Inside An Iconic $21,000,000 Mansion Once Owned By Madonna

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Welcome to the iconic Castillo del Lago,

located at 6342 Mulholland Highway in the Hollywood Hills.

This house is just over 10,500 square feet.

Highlights include an incredible two-story living room

and a circular staircase that spans six floors.

Nine bedrooms, and six bathrooms.

It is considered one of the most incredible examples

of Spanish colonial architecture in southern California.

It's currently on the market for $21 million.

The house was built in 1926.

This Spanish colonial revival house

was formerly owned by Madonna.

I'm here with the owner of Castillo del Lago, Leon Max.

He's going to take us on a tour today

of this magnificent residence.

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Here we are in the most beautiful

two-story drawing room I have ever been in.

I think it's the largest space.

And the house is really well planned to take advantage

of the view of the lake in this direction.

And this courtyard on the other side

which you happen to have a bonus of the Hollywood sign

can be seen from the garden.

Just a lovely light that comes in.

This hill is sort of the last hill

to lose light in the evening.

Very often when I come around the bend

and it's already dark below.

And as I come up, it's still sunny here.

It was one of the first houses built

[Linda] Right, exactly. in the Hollywood land

development in the twenties.

For entertaining, it's a beautiful

space. It's great for entertaining.

All the doors are open in the summer.

One can go into the garden, or one can go

on this terrace here.

[Linda] It's extraordinary to be right in this spot.

[Leon] The whole thing is a mixture of Renaissance style

and North African style, which I think works really well

for Spanish revival architecture.

[Linda] The different materials really resonate

with the tile floors and the different elements

that make the room so special.

[Leon] The interior design here,

I think I was watching too many segments

of the Thrones series.

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Now we're in really a very beautiful space.

It's the media room.

You have to tell us about this.

Yeah, well, I can't take a credit for it

because it was already done like that,

but it's amusing enough that I kept it.

I don't know if it was done during Madonna's days

or the next owner.

I suspect it was the next owner.

And this was basically a sitting arrangement

that somehow got made

into a bed and then never dismantled again.

These embroidered things are called susanis.

They come from Central Asia.

Most of them are 19th century.

I think it's conducive to interesting dreams

so it's a good place to have a,

to smoke a joint.

[Linda chuckles]

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[Linda] So we are now in the tower.

I think it was Madonna's yoga room.

And now I spend quite a lot of time there.

It's this octagonal, relatively small space, and I made it

into this drape tent using

a Renaissance motif for the print.

Cause I want it to be still kind of casual.

Of course, all of these French doors bend back

in the summer, I can open every single door.

And so it's like living in a tent up on top of the mountain

and little birds come and sit here on the railing,

wake me up in the morning.

It's a very different experience of any kind

of a bedroom that one can conjure up.

I mean, it's almost like sleeping outdoors

but in great style.

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Leon, I'd love to hear what your favorite features

are in this room.

It sits 12 and great for dinners

because we light up all the candles here

and there and all this gild work and silver glistens

in a very lovely manner.

This honeycomb pattern is the original

detail in the house that

you restored. I think the charm

of this house is that it was built in '26.

Tile work, of course, is original everywhere.

It was part of that aesthetic in the twenties.

And I think people that live in these kind of houses

or buy these kind of houses are very much preoccupied

with the original elements being preserved.

[Linda] The space is so romantic.

[Leon] It's very romantic,

[Linda] in the evening, indeed, yes. Very beautiful.

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So this staircase is an interesting feature.

Yes, well, it's six stories.

One can walk up the spiral staircase.

Or, of course, just take the elevator.

[Linda] Or just take the elevator [laughs]

As you come up, there's a gym,

there's a separate apartment.

And as you come up this becomes sort of

the front door technically of the house

with this rose garden to the left.

And the spectacular views of downtown to the right.

Someone planted a vineyard there, there's a olive grove

on the hill, and of course the lake.

So you get this panoramic view from here.

And of course the garden has taken it over completely here.

What appears to be fig ivy.

And then climbing roses are woven into it.

So when it's in season

these columns are sort of festooned with roses.

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So here we are in really

one of the most charming libraries.

It's sort of my personal domain.

These two paintings on the walls.

[Linda] They're amazing. These harbor scenes.

Yeah, the 17th century pictures

they just happened to fit here so well.

I brought them from England.

And they make for this kind of wallpaper.

[Linda] They make the room, they're quite fabulous.

What about, do you ever put the fireplace on, or?

Oh yes, absolutely, when it's cold.

It makes it so cozy.

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California, most of the houses are designed

for indoor outdoor flow.

[Linda] Right, it's so beautifully done.

Every plant seems like it's been here for forever.

Some were, in fact.

I like the overgrown look of this fig ivy and jasmine,

the wild kind of romantic feel to this

quite small garden that we can create here.

And of course the smell of all the fruit trees

and jasmine is another benefit at night.

So one can light the fireplace, sit here with a drink.

This incredible aroma.

It's quiet, it's lovely.

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[Linda] I love how sumptuous the space is.

I have this beautiful 16th century Italian wedding bed

and I had the curtains made.

Basically it's an Indian design from 18th century

but basically it functions as a his and hers

because there are two loos on either side.

The primary bathroom is original.

I haven't made any changes to it.

This room is surrounded by balconies.

So all the French doors open up onto the balconies.

And you have different views, a view on downtown

over a reflective pool.

In this direction, a view on the lake and the hills,

and of course a lot of light.

[Linda] But I love also, you have a desk here.

The whole space is used.

There was a fireplace here

in the sitting area and Madonna's bed was on that side.

And this side was basically all

of her clothes done on racks.

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So we're in the informal dining room.

It overlooks the pool and the gardens.

This is a lovely place for breakfast

when the weather is good.

And as you can see, the wisteria

is just beginning to pop little buds.

But when it's in full bloom, it creates this kind of

a hanging ceiling of wisteria,

and the smell of it is lovely.

On a sunny day we usually use this room

for breakfast and small dinners.

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[Linda] So here we are in the kitchen

which I love because it's very neutral

in the house that's so vibrant and exciting.

Madonna, or her brother, designed this.

My only contribution is a stove, it was made for the house,

but it's fairly minimal.

[Linda] It's functional and it's simple.

You can't almost do this better.

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So principle views from the house

over this reflective pond and onto the downtown.

And so originally it was designed to line up

with the city hall, which you can see on the background.

And now we have this view of all these buildings,

lovely at night when it's all lit up.

And of course the view of the lake

in this direction and the view on the house.

And when it's in full bloom

it's really something to behold.

But these grounds are part of three acres

where you have beautiful lawns, shrubs, flowers, trees.

It's just all part of what makes this estate

so really special.

This place is extremely private

because it's above the city noise.

And so when you're here you are in your own little world.

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[Linda] Thank you so much for joining us

on this tour of Castillo del Lago.

This house is just over 10,500 square feet

and sits on almost three acres

and features authentic Spanish colonial architecture.

The most amazing thing

about this property are the 360 degree views.

It's rare to find a house today that has

such incredible architectural pedigree

and has been preserved

the way this house has been preserved.

It's currently on the market for $21 million.

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