The place that struck us the most was the West Room of the Library - as depicted above.
Whenever he was in New York, Morgan spent at least an hour or so every morning there,
thus, it became known as the Morgan study.
The room has been preserved much as it was during his lifetime, except
that the Italian red velvet hangings had to be renewed and the wall covering of red silk
damask was also redone since the original had succumbed to New York's heavily polluted
air.
Within these walls kings and princes, presidents and mayors, collectors
and dealers, scholars, poets, and of course bankers assembled here to work out an
assistance pact to take care of the financial panic of 1907.
The three most prominent features of the room include the marble
mantelpiece, Francia's painting Virgin and Child with Saints Dominic and Barbara,
and the marble bust of a young woman.
The marble mantelpiece is traditionally ascribed to the studio of
Desiderio da Settignano and it appears as a dominant trait right in the center of the
room. The marble is intricately carved in decorating the piece. Tree-like bunch of leaves
or flower-like plants appears to crawl along the sides. Delicate embroidery adds warmth to
the artwork of two men in a sideway position grabbing a round figure separating them. A
candleholding angel stands on each side of the mantelpiece as if guarding it from harm.
Francia's painting Virgin and Child with Saints Dominic and Barbara is typical of the early sixteenth century period. Beautifully framed in a gold,
double-framed center, the Virgin is placed in the middle, gingerly holding the fi-agile
baby Jesus. The two most holy figures are looked on by the two saints as if they are
blessing the newborn Savior. The use of color is quite intense with blue and red tones
dictating the focus of one's eye.
Lastly, the marble bust of a young woman, still charming despite damage,
comes from the Strozzi collection and has sometimes been identified as a portrait of
Marietta Strozzi from the studio of Desiderio da Settignano. The woman clearly possesses
delicate features, with a long elegant neck boldly exposed. The woman sits on a wooden
platform surrounded with yellow wooden decoration.
Book of Hours, late 15th Cent. MS M.618, fol 56v-57
