latest photographic images of jewelers' building ongoing exterior restoration

my ongoing effort documenting the jewelers building at 35 e wacker has intensified over the past week, when the northwest turret (one of four designed to conceal water tanks) was fully exposed with newly added terra cotta - executed by boston valley terra cotta. more to follow. 

built in the mid-1920’s by joachim giaver and frederick dinkelber, the jewelers building is so called because it originally housed the city’s diamond merchants, and formally went to great lengths to protect its tenants wares by use of an auto elevator that transported them directly from vehicle on the ground to offices as high as the 22^nd floor). another of the building’s historical quirks was its use as a rooftop lounge and speakeasy run by al capone during prohibition. the building has been in the process of an elaborate multi-year renovation entailing the interior be re-built floor-by-floor, while preserving the historic facade and structure. the building is now reconfigured and modernized while historic aspects are being meticulously restored. on the facade, the 26^th floor roof was replaced in recent years, and scaffolding cloaked the turrets and dome for two years while the building conducted maintenance (from 2014 to 2016). the building’s website indicates its facade repair program will likely be ongoing.