☞ REVIVE: Harlem Brownstone Cornices

Cornices are the crown of any prewar building and Harlem has quite a few. Unfortunately, the cornice usually gets the last bit of attention and often times are removed completely. A reader wanted us to post more on services and restoration so we will combine some known resources with our periodic brownstone revive post.

The above shots are the before and after of cornice work from the Brownstone Authority, which is a company that works in Brooklyn and in Manhattan on most facade related repairs. The middle photo is the before shot and shows a typical wrought metal cornice with peeling paint and weather damage. The same cornice is at top with resurfacing, resealing and a new coat of paint. One of the new, cost effective cornices are those reproduced in fiber glass (lower photo).

We had mixed feelings about fiberglass replicas when we first heard of the trend, but one can compare it to when cornices where originally hand made from wood or carved from stone, and how mass produced, manufactured metal cornices took over as the more cost affective option. If fiberglass looks the same as metal and if cars can use it, then why not a building? We would rather have folks finish off their building up top in the cheaper option than to leave this detail neglected. Nothing more sad than seeing a complete row of brownstone and having that one building, with the missing cornice, break up the visual line of architectural detail up top. www.brownstoneauthority.com