Contact Information
(press inquiries only)
The New York Public Library
Public Relations Office
188 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10016
phone: 212.592.7700
fax: 212.592.7729
Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal Map Division General Fact Sheet
General Fact Sheet
The Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal Map Division
The New York Public Library
The 9-month, $5 million renovation and restoration of the Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal Map Division has restored the 7,000-square-foot space to its original Beaux-Arts grandeur and physically reconfigured the rooms 115 and 117 in the Humanities and Social Sciences Library to create an ideal environment for map study.
The Division was established as a separate collection in 1898 and named a division in 1947.
The Division relocated to its present home in Rooms 115 and 117 in 1963.
The Division comprises 7,000 square feet and consists of a public reading room (Room 117) and a combined stack area/staff work center (Room 115).
The Division's holdings include more than 400,000 maps, as well as 20,000 atlases, books, periodicals, and compact discs about cartography.
Architectural Restoration
The renovation included cleaning and restoration of the Division's historic carved black walnut woodwork, marble door-frames, red quarry floor tiles, bronze chandeliers, and breathtaking painted ceiling.
The magnificent Beaux-Arts plaster ceiling was painted to match its original color palette of green and vermilion, with Dutch metal and copper leaf finishes; uplights were installed to highlight the ceiling's exquisite sculptural detail, which include fruit and vegetable forms, seashells, dragons, and cherubs.
Oversized digitized reproductions as well as antiquarian maps from the collection were hung on walls.
A new reference desk was designed in the style of original designs by Carrère and Hastings.
Seating capacity for users in the Reading Room has increased by 50 percent, from 16 to 24 chairs, at original walnut tables unobstructed by lamps on table surfaces.
World War II blackout paint was removed from grand arched windows, which were repaired, cleaned, and glazed.
Rare red quarry floor tiles, 1-3/16" in thickness and imported from Wales, were removed, cleaned, and replaced in their distinct diagonal patterns; the floors were simultaneously outfitted with data cables and electrical wiring, serving reading room tables that now allow for laptop Internet connections.
Four original Carrère and Hastings-designed chandeliers in Room 117 were restored; five new double-tier chandeliers, based on design of the room's original chandeliers, were installed in Room 115.
Table lamps were removed to facilitate unfolding of large maps on Reading Rooms tables and were replaced with recessed ceiling lights.
The balcony in Room 115, with its ornamental ironwork, was restored and re-supported to allow for the removal of load-bearing columns below. Compact storage shelves for oversized items were installed below.
A lift for transport of oversized materials was constructed between the balcony and first floor of Room 115.
Technology Enhancements
Six 20-inch flat screen computers with high-speed processors and Internet access were added in addition to oversized color printers.
Four computer terminals were outfitted with the most up-to-date electronic cartographic resources. Free wireless Internet connection for laptop users is available.
New geospatial mapping software, including ESRI GIS software, Land Info, Lot Info, and TopoZonePro, enables users to create maps and manipulate datasets to yield geographic, economic, and social information; users may download data in the public domain to CD, DVD, or flash drive.
Other electronic resources include Tri-State Sanborn Atlases and access to the subscription-based website www.OldMaps.com.
Collection Storage
Oversized flat cases and compact shelving have doubled the division's storage capacity; 100,000 maps previously stored off-site are now immediately accessible to Library staff.
More than 900 drawers for sheet maps and more than 400 oversized shelves, in addition to stack extensions elsewhere in the Library, house more than 95% of the Division's collections on-site allowing for fast retrieval by Library staff.
The Reading Room now offers 1,400 linear feet of open shelving for users to retrieve frequently used reference materials, such as U.S. and world atlases and books about cartography.
Library Administration
Catherine C. Marron, Chairman, The New York Public Library
Paul LeClerc, President, The New York Public Library
David Ferriero, Andrew W. Mellon Director and Chief Executive of the Research Libraries
Alice C. Hudson, Chief, The Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal Map Division
Matthew A. Knutzen, Assistant Chief, The Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal Map Division
Joanna Pestka, AIA, Vice President for Capital Planning and Facilities Operations
Mark Hirsch, Senior Project Manager Capital Planning and Construction
Architectural Team
David Brody Bond, LLP, Architect
Lewis Davis, FAIA, Partner-in-Charge
Ernesto Bachiller, AIA, Technical Architect
Julia Doern, AIA, Project Manager
F.J. Sciame Construction, Construction Manager
###
The New York Public Library gratefully acknowledges Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal for their generous support of the Map Division.
Congressman James T. Walsh, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, New York City Council Speaker A. Gifford Miller, New York City Council Member Christine C. Quinn, and New York State Senator Thomas K. Duane provided critical support for this important renovation.
