Take a look inside Rosecliff, a 30-room mansion built for a Gilded Age heiress and modeled after a French palace

Rosecliff cost an estimated $2.5 million to build during the Gilded Age — around $91.4 million in today's dollars.

Tours of the property are considerably more affordable. One adult ticket costs $25 and can be purchased through the Preservation Society of Newport County. An app called Newport Mansions also offers self-guided audio tours of Rosecliff and other Gilded Age mansions in the area such as the Breakers.

I visited Rosecliff during a period in August when admission was free but only the first floor of the mansion was open to the public.

In the Gilded Age, wealthy members of society thought of themselves as royalty and modeled their homes after European palaces accordingly.

King Louis XIV commissioned Grand Trianon in 1670. Rosecliff's similarities to the French palace are visible in the shape of the building as well as the design of the windows and exterior.

When guests arrived for one of Oelrichs' gatherings, the women would climb the stairs to hand off their outerwear and then descend the grand staircase with dramatic flair.

"The stairs are really designed for you to be seen," Abigail Stewart, the research and interpretation coordinator for the Preservation Society of Newport County, said in the audio tour.

Most wealthy women in Newport during the Gilded Age were expected to host at least six dinner parties every summer, each with at least a dozen courses and live music.

Upon closer examination, lyres and trumpets were visible in the design.

All of the main rooms and bedrooms had functioning fireplaces, even though Rosecliff was equipped with central heating.

Measuring 40 feet by 80 feet, the ballroom has been featured in films such as "The Great Gatsby," "27 Dresses," and "Amistad."

The ballroom can seat 160 people for dinner and dancing, according to the Preservation Society of Newport County.

"If you visualize the setting lit by the gas of the period, it would have given you the impression of being outdoors at sunset," Paul Miller, a curator at Rosecliff, said of the ceiling painting in the audio tour.

Hermann Oelrichs worked for the North German Lloyd shipping line. He died at sea in 1906, but he and Oelrichs had already been separated and living on opposite coasts for years.

Hermann Oelrichs was an award-winning swimmer and athlete.

The walls were green with gold accents when Oelrichs lived at Rosecliff, but they've since been painted white.

The mirrored panels in the corner of the room hid the butler's pantry.

The grounds featured flower gardens as well as statues and decorative trellises.

Rosecliff overlooks Sheep Point Cove and is located along Newport's Cliff Walk, which passes by some of the area's historic homes.

At Rosecliff, I could imagine Oelrichs entertaining guests in glittering candlelit rooms during the Gilded Age just as much as I could picture attending a modern wedding or gala there. It's a captivating place to visit in any century.