Lots of New York buildings are adorned with animals: horses, squirrels, even elephants.
But you don’t see a lot of sheep—except for the two bighorn sheep heads on the facade of a handsome 12-story limestone building at 114 East 13th Street.
The building was converted into a pricey co-op in 1984. Luckily the sheep heads remain; they provide a clue as to who the original tenant was.
The company that used to occupy the building, the American Felt Company, “made felt used in pianos,” states cityrealty.com.
It’s fascinating how many former factories and manufacturing buildings paid homage to the animals who helped fill their coffers—like the beaver and squirrel of West 29th Street and the silkworm clock on Park Avenue South.
Tags: American Felt Company. 114 East 13th Street, animals on building facades, East 13th Street, East Village industry, New York in 1909, sheep carved into buildings
November 7, 2011 at 10:29 am |
These ram heads are really well done. The fact that felt is (or used to be) made of wool is apparent to people who work with old pianos or collect old felt pennants–moths like these as much as they do old clothes.
November 7, 2011 at 3:09 pm |
I love them. (Incredible horns!) And interestingly, before the turn of the century, Union Square was the city’s piano showroom district (among the music halls and theaters).
November 7, 2011 at 3:35 pm |
There is also a building with ram’s heads on it in Harlem. You can see them from the east side of the Metro North train when you pull into the 125th Street station coming from Grand Central. I have always admired them and wished I could see them without a dirty window in between.
November 7, 2011 at 4:09 pm |
I wonder if the building had a wool/fabric manufacturing connection….
November 21, 2011 at 5:05 am |
[...] Ephemeral New York spots sheep heads on East 13th. [...]
March 5, 2012 at 4:27 am |
[...] sheep, owls, rabbits, and squirrels are some of the most popular animal [...]
January 9, 2013 at 1:47 am |
[...] buildings are decorated with all kinds of creatures. I’ve seen birds, horses, elephants, even the heads of sheep. But I’ve never spotted a seahorse, until [...]