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Auction Features Plaza Hotel Items

The hotel, currently closed for renovation, will reopen in early 2007.

Mairi Beautyman -- Interior Design, 2/16/2006 12:00:00 AM

On March 15, a sale of select contents from the legendary Plaza Hotel in New York will draw collectors around the world to Christie’s. The New York auction house will sell 350 lots of items ranging from monogrammed flatware and china, to elegant chandeliers and mirrors, entry tables, and bed linens. Prices starting at $50, could go as high as $18,000.

Highlights include a set of eight photomechanical reproductions of Frank Lloyd Wright’s architectural renderings (estimate: $800-1,200) and two pairs of Frank Lloyd Wright-style mahogany armchairs (estimate: $200-300) from the Frank Lloyd Wright Suite. A George III-style inlaid mahogany sideboard (estimate: $2,000-3,000), a silk damask canopy and headboard (estimate: $700-900), and a pair of George III-style mahogany library armchairs (estimate: $1,200-1,800) will also be for sale, from the Lady Mendl Suite, named after interior designer, Elsie de Wolfe Mendl.

On March 12, author Deborah Davis, who consulted to Christie’s for the sale, will present a lecture on her upcoming book. Party of the Century: The Fabulous Story of Truman Capote and His Black and White Ball will be published in March by Wiley.

The 19-story Plaza Hotel, designed by architect Henry Janeway Hardenbergh, opened its doors in 1907. In April 2005, the hotel closed to undergo an extensive $350 million renovation and restoration. Reopening is slated to coincide with the hotel's 100th anniversary, in early 2007.