South Foyer.
This leads to the master bedrooms. French doors can be closed to separate this wing from the rest of the second floor. In the foyer are paintings by Kellar-Reutlingen and Firman-Girard.
Frederick Vanderbilt’s Room.
This room has carved woodwork of Circassian walnut. The bed and dresser were designed as part of the woodwork and were installed by Norcross Brothers. The room was designed by Georges A. Glaenzer. The walls and doors are covered with 17th-century Flemish tapestry. Hand-painted designs on the silk lampshades match those on the Chinese bases. The fireplace has a large carved mantel. On the floors are dark-red rugs made in India.
Frederick Vanderbilt’s room. Note tapestried walls.
Mrs. Vanderbilt’s bedroom. Courtesy The New York Times Studio.
Mrs. Vanderbilt’s Room.
In this room, as in the Gold Room downstairs, there was an attempt at accurate reproduction. This room, designed by Ogden Codman, is a reproduction of a French queen’s bedroom of the Louis XV period. The bed is surrounded by a rail. (In French practice, courtiers gathered around the rail for morning levees.) The wall at the head of the bed is covered with hand-embroidered silk. Other walls are wood paneled and inset with French paintings. The heavily napped rug was made especially for this room; it weighs 2,300 pounds. Furniture is French 18th-century. Created by Paul Sormani, it is modeled on Louis XV period pieces. A curio case in front of the bedrail contains French fans and inside the rail is a prayer table and kneeling cushion.