Today we visited 2 Temple Place, a building in central London known for its architecture and opulence. Completed in 1895, it was built as a workplace for William Waldorf Astor who, at one time, was the richest man in the United States. Waldorf Astor moved to the UK in 1891 and become a British subject. The building's interior, with its abundant use of woods, including ebony, mahogany and oak, is magnificent.
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Great oak staircase
rising from a marble, jasper and onyx floor
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| Stained-glass roof over atrium |
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The gallery has six newel posts with wood-carved figures
representing characters in American literature |
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| Beautiful wood-paneled walls everywhere |
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A frieze of 82 characters from Shakespeare's Othello,
Henry the VIII, Antony & Cleopatra and Macbeth |
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| There are ten pillars of solid ebony |
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A statue of Hester Prynne
from Hawthorne's novel The Scarlett Letter |
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| The door leading from the atrium to the office |
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| Door detail depicting characters from King Arthur |
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| Stained-glass window in the office |
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| This was Astor's office |
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| A niche in the office has a statue of Florence Nightingale |
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| The library room looking into atrium |
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| Windows in the library |
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| Yes, those are my shoes before I descended the spiral staircase |
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