Architectural Salvage Then: Part III

A few years ago, we featured some information (post I and post II) about the American trade in European architectural salvage. Arthur Todhunter, a British immigrant, established a New York showroom to sell salvaged architectural materials. He also created his own line of reproductions based on the salvaged pieces. His first showroom was at 414 Madison Avenue and his second was at 119 East 57th Street. Clients for his pieces included New Orleans architect Moise Goldstein (1882-1972).

Todhunter offered the mantel shown in the top photograph for $1800. Made of Sienna marble and featuring a central Venus with Cupid, the mantel was a massive 83" tall and 74" wide.

The mantel in the second photograph was extracted from John Loughborough Pearson's (1817-1897) William Waldorf Astor Residence, No. 19 Carlton House Terrace, London and offered for $950. It was of English marble with an inlay of Sienna marble.

The transatlantic trade for such architectural salvage bottomed out with the 29 October 1929 Wall Street Crash.

Images above: Arthur Todhunter, 119 East 57th Street, New York. Advertisements photographs. Undated. Moise Goldstein Office Records, Southeastern Architectural Archive, Special Collections Division, Tulane University Libraries.