Once listed at $11M this ‘green’ WA state estate can be snapped up for just under $6M

Craig Sailor
·2 min read
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A one-of-a-kind estate in Tenino that went on the market in 2018 for $11 million is now a bargain at $5.95 million.

In 2018, it was the most expensive residence ever listed in Thurston, Pierce and Mason counties, according to Tacoma agent Michael Morrison of Sotheby’s International Realty.

The estate is called Merkaba, which, potential buyers are told, means light, spirit and body.

South African owner Rebecca Oppenheimer reportedly told the home’s initial architect that she wanted it to resemble a spaceship and the famed Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Guggenheim Museum.

The 8,462-square-foot home has few right angles and many unique features. The curvaceous walls are covered in clay rather than paint.

A view of the copper-lined meditation room in the house in Tenino. The room features a window pointing to the North Star. The estate is called Merkaba, which, potential buyers are told, means light, spirit and body.
A view of the copper-lined meditation room in the house in Tenino. The room features a window pointing to the North Star. The estate is called Merkaba, which, potential buyers are told, means light, spirit and body.

One room is lined in copper leaf. It has a round window that is permanently aligned with the North Star.

‘Green’ house

The home at 7415 Nanitch Lane SE has solar panels and geothermal heating.

Olympia-based designers Ruben and Jessicarae Nunez of Boxhouse Design redesigned the home from the original rough sketches and oversaw construction for the owner.

They estimated that over 200 local construction workers, crafts people and artists worked on the house.

One wing of the home contains a rectangular saltwater pool. It becomes an outdoor pool when window panels raise via hydraulics and airplane actuators at the touch of a button.

“She (built) it at an 80-foot length so she wouldn’t have to turn around all the time,” Morrison said. “She wanted to swim laps.”

A view of the 80-foot-long saltwater lap pool in Tenino. The estate is called Merkaba, which potential buyers are told means light, spirit and body.
A view of the 80-foot-long saltwater lap pool in Tenino. The estate is called Merkaba, which potential buyers are told means light, spirit and body.

Outside features complement the interior. Visitors are greeted by two grassy hills swirling into the sky like seashells. The features are modeled after Charles Jencks’ Garden of Cosmic Speculation in Scotland.

Pathways, wisteria-draped arbors, water features and stone-slab walkways surround the house.

Views of the 85-acre property present themselves from every window and balcony.

A view of the garden at the estate in Tenino. The estate is called Merkaba, which potential buyers are told means light, spirit and body.
A view of the garden at the estate in Tenino. The estate is called Merkaba, which potential buyers are told means light, spirit and body.

“You absolutely see no one,” Morrison said. “You’re completely private.”

There’s a barn with guest quarters above, terraced garden, rose garden and fruit orchard.

There’s also a helicopter pad.

Construction was completed in 2006, the Oppenheimer told the Wall Street Journal.

Back to South Africa

Oppenheimer is the South African granddaughter of Harry Oppenheimer, former chairman of De Beers Consolidated Mines. De Beers once controlled 90 percent of the world’s diamond market.

Oppenheimer was associated with the nearby Ramtha’s School of Enlightenment.

Ramtha is, according to school founder J. Z. Knight, the spirit of a man who lived more than 30,000 years ago. Knight claims that she communicates with the spirit.

In 2008, Oppenheimer bid $172,500 during a charity auction for a private session with Ramtha, according to the Nisqually Valley News. Oppenheimer also founded a private school in Rainier, The Phoenix Rising School, the newspaper said.

Oppenheimer put Merkaba on the market in 2018 when she returned to live in South Africa.