LA neighborhood’s famed purple Victorian home built in 1888 hits the market for $2M

There are colorful houses in Los Angeles. There are neutral houses — and Neutra houses — in Los Angeles. And then there’s this one.

Sitting proudly atop Mount Royal Drive in the aging-hipster enclave of Eagle Rock is a 138-year-old Queen Anne Victorian painted head to toe in unapologetic purple. And lavender. And mauve. With a dash of cotton-candy pink and a smattering of seafoam, Fanta orange and terracotta.

Locals call the property Esperanza — Spanish for “hope.” Seeing as it just hit the market for $2 million, ordinary local house hunters can only “hope” to get their dainty gloves on this vintage showstopper.

The historic Esperanza Victorian home stands in the Eagle Rock neighborhood of Los Angeles. Susan Pickering Photography
The Victorian home sits proudly at the top of Mount Royal Drive in the aging-hipster enclave on LA’s east side. Susan Pickering Photography
Built in 1888, the house is a 138-year-old Queen Anne Victorian painted head-to-toe in unapologetic purple. Susan Pickering Photography

Built in 1888 right before the collapse of the Southern California land boom, the house is pure Victorian pomp and grace.

Think a witch’s hat turret, a wealth of spectacular chandeliers, decorative scalloped shingles, a wide covered porch framed by stone (perfect for judging passers-by “To Kill a Mockingbird” style), a separate secret balcony accessible by a sexy spiral staircase, and that impossible-to-ignore lavender exterior framed in bright-pink and dark-purple trim.

It looks like something a fairy-tale pixie hopped up on grape soda might have dreamed up.

Despite the period touches, there’s an in-ground pool out back for floating and emoting. Peep those spiral stairs. Susan Pickering Photography

The generous 2,670-square-foot home boasts four bedrooms and three bathrooms on a nearly half-acre lot — with “city light” views.

Inside, classical details stand the test of time — wood floors throughout, a dramatic living-room fireplace, and that respectable all-bedrooms-up layout.

The kitchen, primary suite and bathrooms have been blessed with more recent upgrades, but the theme of purple royalty remains strong throughout, including the kitchen island.

The witch’s-hut turret is to-die-for, so break out your broomstick. Susan Pickering Photography

Speaking of bathrooms, those grandiose bathtubs are fit for a “Game of Thrones” king, complete with an elaborate dragon faucet in one.

There’s even an in-ground pool out back for further floating and emoting.

The last known owner Leonora Pierotti, who was said to be born in 1913, was the daughter of Italian immigrant Attilio Pierotti, who made his fortune in California spearheading the packing and shipment of local fruits, including citrus.

Come for the bathtub, stay for the “Game of Thrones” feels. Susan Pickering Photography
A soaking tub fit for a king in their purple reign era. Susan Pickering Photography
The generous 2,670-square-foot home boasts four bedrooms and three bathrooms. Susan Pickering Photography
The theme of purple royalty remains strong throughout, including the kitchen island. Susan Pickering Photography
Speaking of fairy tales, there are mirrors, mirrors on the walls. Susan Pickering Photography
A garden of delight to attract and enchant, right in the heart of hipster Eagle Rock. Susan Pickering Photography

Leonora Pierotti was no casual fan of the color purple, apparently. According to listing agent Laurie Turner, Pierotti, who reportedly drove a purple Hummer, “had a penchant for purple and it made her happy.”

Eagle Rock has spent the last two decades metamorphosing from suburban to sought-after, and this house sits right in the middle of that creative renaissance — close enough to the artsy coffee shops and new restaurants, far enough up that hill to feel like its own little kingdom of all it surveys.

For $2 million you get more than square footage and ample gardens.

You get a genuine piece of Industrial Revolution-era LA that somehow survived the wrecking ball, the stucco-fication of the City of Angels, and every flash-in-the-pan design trend that tried to wipe out this kind of joyful maximalism.

Esperanza is currently listed with Coldwell Banker Realty.


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Whether you’re actually in the market for a castle to call your own or just want to visit the open home and drool over all that color, one thing is certain: There will never be another house in Eagle Rock quite like this purple mountain of majesty.

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