Renovation project reveals architectural history. (Design and Development).

For more than 50 years, 10 East 40th St. has had a secret. Underneath the harsh fluorescent lighting and "modern" drop ceiling in the lobby of the 48-story Midtown office tower laid a magnificent sample of New York City's architectural history: a 80-year-old, ornate inlaid plaster ceiling at soaring heights.

In September, upon the completion of a yearlong historic restoration project, leasing and managing agent Joseph P. Day Realty Corp. revealed this hidden treasure in its original glory and delivered to its tenants a magnificent interior environment.

"We've spent five years undertaking a complete renovation and modernization of 10 East 40th Street, including new elevators, HVAC, windows, common areas and power. This lobby restoration was the last and most aesthetically satisfying of all," said Timothy Farrell, who along with Richard Brickell of Joseph B. Day serve as the property's leasing agents and owner's representatives directing the renovation project.

The lobby, like the building itself, was designed by Ludlow & Peabody, the acclaimed turn-of-the-century architectural firm that also created Carnegie Hall. In the case of 10 East 40th Street, formerly known as the Chase Tower, the property's mid-block location between Fifth and Madison Avenues just across the street from the New York Public Library sometimes obscures its architectural stature. And a drop ceiling installed during a 1950s era renovation did not help matters.

"When the new owners took control of the property in 1964, they uncovered the beautiful ceiling soon after during a routine maintenance project and recognized that it was just crying out to be restored," Joseph P. Day's Brickell says. "In the last decade, we set our priorities to first make sure the property accommodates the needs of today's modern tenants, and then take on the painstaking task of restoring this piece of New York history to its original splendor."

So, for years, the building's prestigious tenants -- including HSBC, Marvel Entertainment and the Echo Design Group -- passed through an historic architectural gem and didn't even know it. "Most of the tenants didn't even realize the grand old ceiling existed," Farrell adds. "They have been great about the ongoing restoration, which was undertaken at an accelerated pace to minimize disruption. Most of them can't believe what's been hiding just above their heads all these years, and quite a few of our tenants have flashed me the thumbs-up as they've seen the ceiling come back to life right before their eyes."

Finding craftsmen to replicate this lost turn-of-the-century art form was an obstacle, since so few ceilings of this type remain today. Adding to the problem was that supports for the drop ceiling and ductwork installed in the 1950s were simply hammered through the ornate plaster, gouging more than 50 different holes into the artwork. Modern restoration methods and materials, plus a little luck, provided the solution. Enough sections of the old ceiling remained intact, which allowed craftsmen from L & M Studios to create plaster castings of the original patterns replicated throughout the ceiling and begin the restoration process. Artisans from Kessler Restorations then matched the colors of the original patterns' and hand-painted and gold-gilded every detail spanning nearly 2,000 SF.

During the ceiling restoration project, the lobby's marble walls were cleaned and restored to their original condition by experts at Carl J. Terranova & Sons, removing decades of wear that delineated the newly uncovered portions of the walls. To top off the restoration project, which was coordinated by Paxhia Design, Joseph P. Day commissioned Crenshaw Lighting to replicate chandeliers that hung from the original 15-foot-high ceilings based on research into historic patterns and the recollections of long-time tenant Jim McKinnon of Cotswold Industries.