he restoration work undertaken at Mayville from 1974 until 1978 was done according to the wishes of the benefactor, Ms Nita Steyn. The exterior and interior finishes were reduced to their simplest and most basic forms. The exterior walls were plastered and whitewashed and the woodwork painted green as generally associated with old Cape buildings.
During the restoration the interior walls and doors were finished completely in white as research on the authentic finishes had not yet been undertaken. Ms Steyn had removed some of the additions her parents had installed or built, but left the restoration of the house to the museum.
The corrugated iron veranda roof was replaced with a vine covered veranda and the iron roof on the house was replaced with a thatched roof with a dormer window. All modern additions were removed. The museum has now embarked on a restoration project to restore the interior with papered walls and grained woodwork.
Mayville forms a charming adjunct to the Drostdy complex because of its eclectic combination of Cape vernacular and English elements.