View from the top: we tour Canberra’s best property
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Cities can contain many apartments, but there are few apartments that can contain an entire city.
Sapphire’s Penthouse 405 on the Kingston Foreshore carves out its own iconic footprint in Canberra and is open for expressions of interest until 22 November.
Aptly named “Crown Jewel”, the penthouse juts out onto Lake Burley Griffin’s East Basin, in three custom-designed north-facing levels of absolute luxury.
The internal levels command 180-degree views of the city, punctuated by the flagpole of Parliament House, Black Mountain Tower and Mount Ainslie, while the enormous rooftop terrace provides 360-degree unparalleled views of the entire capital region.
Developed by Keggins in a unique amalgamation of three apartments, the Crown Jewel is generating international interest, and while will inevitably invite comparisons with some of the most luxe listings of global cities, it is uniquely Canberran.
You can sit out on the balcony and view the cosmopolitan bustle of the Kingston Foreshore to your left, gaze across all of the national institutions and Civic in the middle distance, before taking in a docile herd of cattle grazing upon the Jerrabomberra Wetlands to your right.
High above the city, the air is remarkably quiet and – like all six of the Sapphire penthouses – Crown Jewel occupies its own pod, ensuring no adjoining walls and complete privacy.
Blackshaw listing agent Mario Sanfrancesco said this sale would set a new benchmark for luxury living in Canberra and the surrounding region.
“It is unlike anything that has ever been built here, and its position on the Lake is completely unique. People may eventually try and build something as grand, but they will never be able to replicate this location and the views that it offers.”
The specs are just as impressive as the vistas – Crown Jewel has five bedrooms, five bathrooms, four walk-in robes, an eight-car garage, four outdoor entertaining spaces (including a spa on the roof), six-metre-high ceilings, and 750 square metres of living space.
The design elements are next level, from the Arabescato Vagli joinery and anodised gold trim detail, to the grand sweeping double staircase in Corian (which is heated just like the rest of the floors), Wolf appliances in the kitchen, smoked figured black gum joinery, a Corian & Brass feature gas fireplace, a whiskey bar downstairs and an inbuilt tea and coffee station in the master suite, Astra Walker Brass tapware, calf-leather lined stair rails, Tsar Pinnacle Emerald Green rugs and the most incredible Christopher Boots natural crystal chandeliers.
If you are partial to music, you may want to negotiate for the Steinway and Sons concert grand piano, imported from Hamburg, to remain the centrepiece of the cavernous downstairs living areas.
Two enormous main bedrooms flank either side of the double staircase and each has a wall of floor-to-ceiling glass to access full views of the lake and beyond. You can lie in bed and see the city come to life each morning.
Mario said he was discussing the apartment with several interested parties but had no idea who the new owner would eventually be.
“It could be a world traveller looking for a base in Canberra, it could be a Canberran who sees it and realises there will never be anything else like it on the market. You can never assume anything in real estate!”
“Often people think apartment living is for downsizing, but in this case, it’s going to be a step up from any other Canberra property that is currently in existence or even anything in the future. We use the saying ‘one of a kind’ in real estate a lot but in my 30 years in the industry, this really is just that.”
You can view the Sapphire listing here or contact Mario Sanfrancesco for a private showing.
Photography by Kiernan May.
