3. There Are Guastavino Tiles Inside The Federal Reserve Bank of New York
Aside from its iconic ironwork, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York is home to a stunning vaulted ceiling, featuring tile work from Rafael Guastavino. The famed though now obsolete vaulting technique, used in over 200 historical structures in the city, can give any New York City dweller or tourist a new appreciation for the artisanal origins found in architecture.
Like many of New York City’s cultural influencers, the family members who founded the eponymous Guastavino Company were immigrants. Rafael Guastavino, Sr. (1842-1908), born in Valencia, Spain, and trained as an architect with a Master Builder degree, brought his then nine year-old son Rafael Guastavino, Jr. (1872-1950), also Spanish-born, to the United States. The “Tile Arch System” is one of 24 patents that the Guastavino father and son team devised over time while running the family business. The technique is used to create vaulted arches that consist of layered terra cotta tiles arranged in a zig-zag, most often, herringbone pattern and sealed with specialized cement. The structures that incorporate this architecture are also designed to be fireproof and incredibly stable. Here’s a look at other locations in New York City with Guastavino tiles.