Villa Muramaris located on Gotland was built between 1915-1917 by Johnny Roosval and Ellen Roosval von Hallwyl. The couples union caused great scandal in the swedish society of their time.
Ellen was the daughter of count Walther von Hallwyl and his wife Wilhelmina. At the age of 20, she married lieutenant Henrik de Maré, who in 1897 was appointed military attaché in Berlin. There she began her art studies. In 1904 the couple returned to Sweden when her husband got a position at the court. In Berlin, the young art historian Johnny Roosval had been hired as an informant for the 13-year-old son Rolf. In 1906, Ellen requested a divorce in order to marry Johnny Roosval. This caused a big scandal in society, added to by the fact that he was 12 years younger than she. They married in 1907, even though it meant that she was excluded from the Hallwyl family. Not until 11 years later, when Johnny Roosval had become an associate professor and had the prospect of becoming a professor, did the family accept the alliance.
Starting of her artistic path as a painter, Ellen later turned to sculpture and became a student of Carl Milles. Her sculptures still people the Villas gardens.
Fotos: Stocksund Vintage
Source:
Ellen Fredrika Wilhelmina Roosval von Hallwyl, www.skbl.se/sv/artikel/EllenRoosvalvonHallwyl, Svenskt kvinnobiografiskt lexikon (article by Irja Bergström), 2023-07-02.