Sohmer Piano Building

Manhattan, United States

Exterior only

Visible from the street; the inside is private.

The Sohmer Piano Building stands at 170 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan's Flatiron District, a distinctive Neo-classical Beaux-Arts structure designed by Robert Maynicke and built in 1897–98 as a store-and-loft building for developer Henry Corn. The most recognizable feature is its prominent gold dome, perched atop a two-story octagonal cupola. Originally home to the Sohmer Piano Company's showroom and offices, the building also housed architects, publishers, and merchants dealing in leather, hats, perfume, and upholstery. Located within the Ladies' Mile Historic District, it represents a characteristic later phase of that neighborhood's development. The building was converted to residential condominium apartments in the early twenty-first century, with its architectural features restored between 2002 and 2005 by Bone/Levine Architects.