A typical English manor was usually divided into a front hall and a rear hall. Entering through the symmetrical main entrance, one would see the front hall used for receiving visitors. The equally symmetrical staircases either stood on either side of the front hall or extended outward from the center behind it. Rodriguez Manor was the latter.
The large door to the left beneath the stairs led to the dining room, where the garden's floor-to-ceiling windows were located. The structure on the right was symmetrical to the left, except that opening the door revealed a corridor. To the right of it lay the central partition of the rear courtyard, containing the butler's quarters, pantry, laundry room, kitchen, and so on.
The rooms on the left side of the corridor were reception rooms with small fireplaces, sofas, pianos, and mirrored cabinets. Going straight ahead led to an office that also had floor-to-ceiling glass windows. That was the entire layout of the manor hall.
The architectural design of the manor placed great importance on separating guest areas from private areas. In Rodriguez Manor, the first floor was the active zone, while the second and third floors were quiet zones.
Although the second floor also had offices and studies, they were private areas that normally received no guests. Schiller usually spent his leisure time reading there, while the office in the rear hall on the first floor was better suited for academic discussions with colleagues and friends.
The route guests took upon arriving at Rodriguez Manor was roughly as follows: after being led through the manor gates by the butler, they crossed the front courtyard plaza, entered the main building, and waited in the front hall.
If the manor's owner was on the second floor at the time, the butler would call first.