Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Tower (New York City)
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member Dorcadion Team
N 40° 44.476 W 073° 59.251
18T E 585484 N 4510528
The beautiful Metropolitan Life Insurance Tower together with Chrysler Building and Empire State belongs among my most beloved NYC skyscrapers. This art-deco tower still stands as a reminder of the opulence of early twentieth century New York City...
Waymark Code: WM6HPK
Location: New York, United States
Date Posted: 06/07/2009
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member TheBeanTeam
Views: 36

In 1907, to match status of the most successful US insurance company, the president of the company, John Rogers Hegeman, hired architect Napoleon LeBrun & Sons to design a new opulent seat of the MetLife HQs... Hegeman wanted the building to be the world’s tallest. So, architect LeBrun proposed a magnificent marble office tower, which will be a rival of the other large skyscrapers that had begun springing up in Manhattan just a few years prior.

The tower addition was set atop the northwest portion of the existing building. The fifty-story tower, which stands approximately 213 m tall, can be described as classical in nature, with a standard base, shaft and capital, ending in a pyramidal spire, cupola and lantern. LeBrun, at the request of Hegeman, modeled the tower after the St Mark's Campanile in Venice. There are 4 four-story clocks mounted on the tower, one on each side. They are Italian Renaissance in style, with the time pieces encircled in wreaths and flowers.

In the 1960s, in a move that many architectural experts deemed Metlife Tower copula scandalous, MetLife replaced the marble portions of the tower with limestone. Sadly, much of the original Renaissance ornamentation was removed. In 1999, the building underwent another period of renovation. According to Building Conservation Associates, the cupola was re-gilded with 23.75-carat Italian gold leaf, and the cracked Tuckahoe marble facades were replaced, as were damaged white and turquoise tiles on the clock faces. New and improved lighting systems were installed to make it easier to light the building in holiday colors when appropriate.

Building Name: Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Tower

Structure Height: 700

Number of Stories: 50

Year Built: 1909

Architect/Design Firm: Napoleon LeBrun & Sons

Style: Art Deco

Use: Office Building

Publicly accessible areas:
no public access


Address:
Metropolitan Life Insurance 1 Madison Avenue Flatiron District New York City New York USA


Building Website: [Web Link]

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) link: [Web Link]

Hours: Not listed

Cost: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
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