AS he built the stunning Kiplin Hall nearly 400 years ago, George Calvert could never have imagined the colourful times that were to come for the architectural gem.

In 1620, the design of a perfectly symmetrical and free-standing pavilion was unique in Jacobean architecture and a remarkable tribute to Calvert, who was the first Lord Baltimore and the founder of the US state of Maryland.

The house, near Scorton, Richmond, North Yorkshire, has passed through the hands of three families over the succeeding centuries.

At one stage it stood on the brink of ruin, with an estate of just 100 acres, compared with the 5,000 of the 1890s.

But yesterday, George Calvert returned to Kiplin Hall at one of the most significant moments in the chequered history of the Grade I listed Jacobean house.

An imposing new portrait of Lord Baltimore was unveiled at a ceremony which brought together supporters of the stately mansion from both sides of the Atlantic, to promote the message that the future of Kiplin Hall was bright once again.

Payton Fowler, a direct descendant of Lord Baltimore, commissioned Washington artist Annette Polan to paint a copy of an original portrait by Daniel Mytens, which hangs in the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore.

Mrs Fowler joined dozens of other American visitors yesterday to celebrate the major steps in the restoration of the home taken by a charitable trust, which was set up in 1971 by Bridget Talbot, who was the last owner and niece of the 19th Earl of Shrewsbury.

Over the past 30 years the hall has received also support from the Maryland Historical Society, the Historical Buildings Council and received generous individual donations from interested Americans.

It has recently received a grant the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Mrs Fowler, who was joined at the unveiling of the portrait by the artist and by Lord Crathorne the Lord Lieutenant of North Yorkshire and patron of the hall, said: "They have done a marvellous job here.

"It is so exciting because the last time I was here four years ago it really was in a sad shape.

"It is an absolutely wonderful portrait and there is such an energy in the house now," she said.

Kiplin Hall administrator, Dawn Webster, said more than £500,000 had been spent on rescuing the house since the trust was set up 30 years ago.

The building will also open to the public in July, after securing museum status.

"All of the principal rooms have been done - the drawing room, the dining room, the library, and the gallery," she said.

"It has been a tremendous labour of love for the trustees who have carried it out."