The George F. Baker, Jr. Complex House, the 1931-built Manhattan residence presently owned by print-and-media mogul Peter Brant, popped up for sale this summer. The five-bed, six-bath Upper East Side residence spans 9,590 sq. ft. across four above-ground interior floors; the basement and roof garden of the Carnegie Hill address give it six levels in all. It is currently tagged at $23 million.
The property’s interiors are varied, but extend from the building’s Beaux-Arts-infused Georgian architecture. Gilt, and the color combination of yellow and royal blue, each figure heavily in the whole; the spiral staircase features a meandros-bordered runner, a neoclassical flourish that extends to act as a prologue to each floor, and many rooms feature milled plaster ceilings and moldings, period chandeliers, and fireplaces with carved or sculpted details.
A few of the details are striking; the diffused, kaleidoscopic checkerboard floor in the formal dining room is one, an eye-catching and unexpected touch amid the false columns and deep wall niches. The kitchen strikes a tastefully utilitarian note, uptown-style; high-end gas range with griddle, and an imposing bank of commercial stainless for cold storage, with an elegantly simple prep table as an island and a black iron light fixture overhead.
Specialty spaces and amenities across this property include separate men’s and women’s powder rooms, a butler’s pantry, a library, an elevator and a garden.
