remarkable guaranty building architectural artifact becomes the latest addition to the bldg. 51 museum

last week the bldg. 51 museum acquired an exceptionally rare and historically important late 19th century ornamental cast iron guaranty (later prudential) building flush mount ceiling light fixture medallion. the all original fixture was removed from the commercial building's interior lobby during a senseless remuddling in the 1950's. several light fixtures (including this medallion) and elevator components were taken out of the lobby during the hideous makeover. a couple from cleveland had the foresight to acquire several of these fixtures that otherwise would have ended up in the local landfill or sold for scrap. the c. 1894 oversized medallion is very ornate with intricately designed leafage located around the center. the medallion contains 12 "arms" in alternating sizes and ornamental configurations. the original copper-plated finish remains remarkably intact. the ceiling fixture originally featured a 12 incandescent light bulb "cluster" that was mounted at the very center of the medallion. the dome-shaped cluster contained small arms that were mounted to keyless sockets. an ornamental finial was mounted at the end of the dome. very few of these fixtures are readily available. another identical medallion resides at the new york city metropolitan museum of art. the giant-sized medallion was fabricated by the winslow brothers foundry of chicago, il. the guaranty building, which is now known as the prudential building, was designed by the chicago-based architectural firm of sullivan and adler, and built in buffalo, new york. louis sullivan's design for this building was based on his belief that "form follows function."