Christopher Reilly and Lucia Moncada had no intention of moving to Grant Park, but one day, Christopher got lost in the area and ended up on Park Avenue. Upon seeing this house, he immediately stopped the car. He got out, walked all the way around the wrap-around porch and then went up to the front door. He cupped his hand to the glass in the door, looked in at the beautiful staircase, the dark woodwork and the beautiful fireplaces, and knew it was meant to be his home.

As it turns out, a physician built this elegant house around 1880 when the first three blocks of Park Avenue were just being developed. At the time, this area was still considered Atlanta’s suburbia since there were only about four other homes south of this one in what was to become the Grant Park neighborhood. The physician was also an avid organist, so during construction of the home, a room on the second floor was built with two-story cabinets to hold the original owner’s organ pipes.

As you enter the front door of this magnificent time capsule, you may immediately be overcome with the feeling that you’re walking through a museum. That’s because Christopher and Lucia have many collections on display, including a large assemblage of historical artifacts from the ancient world. In fact, Christopher has one of the largest private collections of Catholic relics in the United States. These include 800-year-old icons, bibles and papal bulls, as well as over 2000 relics of various saints, holy places and related religious paraphernalia.

Take a glance beyond the curio cases and crosses and you’ll notice that the house itself retains much of its original woodwork, pocket doors, pine floors and even its coffered dining room ceiling. While the organ and its accompanying pipes have been long gone, the organ cabinets have been opened to enlarge the entryway. And since purchasing the home in 2003, Christopher and Lucia have replaced the mechanical and the electrical systems, as well as the marble tile around the eight fireplace surrounds. The bathrooms now boast travertine tile and glass, and the old kitchen has been gutted and replaced with a modern one.