A quirky piece of local real estate has recently gone on the block just outside Airdrie.
Canadiana, an enormous estate built at the height of the 1970s Alberta oil boom by a mysterious German baron, is once again on the market.
Carlos von Maffei, who was a banker with CIBC in the 1960s, quietly amassed an estimated $100-million fortune in local real estate and oil ventures.
The main building is a 22,272-square-foot one-storey structure that boasts five fireplaces, a gymnasium, squash court, six-car garage, and wine cellar. And because Mr. von Maffei was known for being rather paranoid, the estate is enclosed  with barbed-wire fences. The main house is also equipped with a basement “getaway tunnel” leading to an adjoining barn.
The property also includes an indoor equestrian arena known as the Canadiana Equestrian Centre, with barns, paddocks and four duplexes to house workers on the estate.
And how much will this beauty cost? Well, you can pick it up for the princely sum of $12.5 million.