Dragonstone was built using advanced Valyrian stoneworking techniques, which were lost during the Doom of Valyria, making Dragonstone a unique existence among the many castles in Westeros.
However, Valyrian stoneworking was undoubtedly a very advanced technique, whether for building castles or paving roads. The few Valyrian roads on the continent of Essos, which have remained sturdy and smooth as new for thousands of years, are a testament to this.
After Danniella moved into Dragonstone, she often dreamed of the original construction of Dragonstone. She guessed that she must have awakened the Targaryen Family's dream-seeing bloodline.
So, the next time she entered a dream, she paid special attention to how those Dragonstone were forged. Slowly, she began to understand some of the principles behind it. It turned out that the most important aspect of Valyrian stoneworking technology relied on Dragonflame and some metabolic products of dragons.
After taming Dreamfire, Danniella also tried to build a road imitating the Valyrian road in Goat Town. Although the effect was much worse, it was still an extremely rare black stone road.
So Danniella specifically selected a group of craftsmen to cooperate with Danniella in developing the production of black Dragonstone, but so far, the Dragonstone produced has been relatively rough, but after being polished by masons, it is very suitable for building houses and roads. She believes that after repeated experiments, better Dragonstone can certainly be forged in the future.
Goat Town has now grown considerably under Danniella's planning, with uniform black stone streets and black stone buildings looking very orderly. Moreover, Danniella also had them build special hot spring bathrooms and sewage treatment pipes using the nearby volcanic hot springs.
She also selected some old and infirm bachelors from the refugees in King's Landing to specifically handle the town's domestic waste and sewage. These materials, when fermented with dragon excrement and volcanic ash, make excellent fertilizer.
Goat Town has now developed nearly 10,000 mu of fertile land. Because the crops here can be harvested twice a year, Danniella has improved many crops to be quite high-yielding over the past decade or so, especially with the addition of dragon fertilizer, the yield is no longer inferior to the real world.
The yield per mu of barley in the last season reached 180 kilograms, which is undoubtedly a miracle in this world where the average yield per mu is only tens of kilograms. The people of White Sheep Town firmly believe that this is the blessing brought to them by Danniella, the auspicious princess.
Therefore, they all regard Danniella as the embodiment of the Maiden of the Seven Gods. Although not as grand as Princess Rhaenyra's Light of the Kingdom, it is at least closer to the hearts of the people.
Because the new island is now her own territory, Danniella can set her own tax policies. Danniella only collected 40% of the grain as land rent. This has allowed the people of the new island to live a life of abundance for the past two years.
White Sheep Town also became increasingly lively. Various handicrafts also gradually flourished.
Dragonstone is built entirely of colossal black Dragonstone, with its towers carved in the likeness of dragons. Even the battlements along the walls are adorned with numerous dragon-shaped gargoyles of various forms.
Most of the castle's design is related to dragons. Smaller dragons adorn door frames, dragon claws extending from the walls serve as torch holders, massive stone wings contain blacksmiths' forges and armories, and dragon tails form arches, bridges, and outdoor staircases.
However, Dragonstone is permeated with a faint fishy and sulfurous smell, and its overall color scheme is very dim.
It is more like a military fortress than a noble castle. Perhaps this was the original purpose when the Valyrian Freehold built Dragonstone. It's just that before they could act against Westeros, Valyria itself was destroyed by the great catastrophe.
The Stone Drum Tower is the main castle of Dragonstone. When a storm approaches, its ancient walls echo with rumbling sounds, hence its name. The solemn and massive black megalithic structure fills people with awe.
The cells in the dungeon beneath the main castle are very hot, dark, and damp, making it a very unpleasant experience to be confined there.
The main castle has many secret passages and hidden staircases. The largest secret passage leads directly to the center of Dragonmount via an arched stone bridge. This is where the Targaryen Dragon Knight would summon his dragon and fly directly out of the massive Dragonmount.
The Painted Table Chamber is located at the top of the Stone Drum Tower, a circular room with four tall, narrow windows facing the four cardinal directions: east, west, south, and north.
Inside the hall is a massive wooden table, intricately carved with a detailed map of Westeros. Aegon the Conqueror used it to plan his campaigns during the War of Conquest.
The 'Painted Table' is over seventeen or eighteen meters long, about half its length at its widest point, and less than two meters at its narrowest.
The position corresponding to Dragonstone is meticulously designed to align with a seat on a raised platform, the Dragonstone Throne, allowing a full view of everything on the table.
The Painted Table Chamber is the best-lit place in Dragonstone, so Danniella usually likes to bring her maids here to listen to Tigris Scholar's lessons.
The entire Painted Table Chamber is shaped like a dragon lying flat on the ground, and people enter through its open maw.
The adjacent kitchen, on the other hand, looks like a dragon curled up in a ball.
Aegon's Garden is located to the east and south of the Painted Table Chamber, facing the Narrow Sea, and the scenery is very beautiful.
Aegon's Garden is filled with the pleasant scent of pine, and tall black trees rise from all around. There are also wild roses and towering thorny bushes, and cranberries grow in the muddy ground.
After Danniella discovered the efficacy of dragon dung, the plants here were much better cared for.
However, this secret is only known to the Dragon Guard, and they cannot communicate with outsiders, so it is Danniella's exclusive patented technology.
Dragon Tower is one of the most scenic towers on Dragonstone, with a screeching dragon at its spire exuding an air of arrogance. This is used to receive noble guests. Generally, only great lords are qualified to stay here.
Sea Dragon Tower is one of the towers of Dragonstone. It sits facing the sea, shaped like a sleeping giant dragon. Below the raven cage on the tower are the Archmaesters' rooms. The tower's staircase is narrow and winding.
Walking down the steps of the Sea Dragon Tower, then passing through the hall adorned with portraits of Targaryen Family ancestors, moving between the giant dragon heads on the middle and inner walls, through the black iron gate of the wall, and finally ascending the steps to reach the Painted Table Chamber.
In the Sept of Dragonstone, there are wooden statues of the Seven Gods.
The Father's entire body was gilded; the Mother was draped in the finest silks; the Crone's eyes were inlaid with pearls; the Stranger was carved in the image of a Half-man and Half-dragon; the Warrior wore Targaryen Family armor;
The Maiden's image is said to be modeled after Aegon the Conqueror's sister Rhaenys; the Smith's image was also dyed to resemble a white-haired, purple-eyed Valyrian.
The idols were carved from the masts of ships, which were the vessels used by the ancestors of the Targaryen Family when they fled across the Narrow Sea from Valyria.
For centuries, they have been painted with layers of colorful lacquer, gilded, silver-plated, and inlaid with jewels.
There are several altars and stained glass in the Sept.
It is said that Aegon the Conqueror knelt here in prayer the night before he set sail to conquer the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros.
However, this is not credible, as Aegon only famously converted to the Faith of the Seven after reaching Oldtown during the Conquest. Therefore, the Sept must have been built after that.
But people in this world like to associate their families and their actions with deities, although there are indeed deities in this world.
Dragonstone will be Danniella's base for a considerable period of time, so she secretly resolved to manage it well. Only then would she have the strength to protect the family's dragons. Thinking of how they were senselessly sacrificed in the Dance of the Dragons in history, Danniella's heart was very restless.
Actually, with the new island, Dragonstone's area has expanded significantly this time. Danniella estimated in the past few days that, excluding mountains and tidal flats, the cultivable land area of the new island is no less than 500,000 mu, and the slopes and tidal flats suitable for planting pasture and flowers and trees are even more than 1,000,000 mu.
Even the still-smoking volcano contains many exploitable resources. Danniella already has a rough plan in mind, but it cannot be implemented immediately. However, she can slowly start to try.
Her current stage is still primarily focused on learning. In fact, she hasn't truly integrated into this world in recent years.
Her identity is special, and the people and things she can access are limited; secondly, the red values she was shaped by in her previous life are difficult to change all at once. Especially the Chinese people's crazy farming gene makes it difficult for Danniella to stand high above the clouds and look down on all living beings.