On an idyllic site at Point Piper, Captain John Piper built the most elegant residence in Sydney as a marine villa, which for a few years became famous for the parties given by its owner until his bankruptcy in 1827. The Dome Room, with its French windows, two domes, arches and Argand lamp, is depicted here in a rare interior view. The house epitomised a style to which many aspired but few achieved. It was demolished in the mid-1850s.