National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior

Resource History and Description of Existing Conditions
The major Vanderbilt-era alteration to this room was the replacement of the original
paintings. It was most certainly done at the same time as those in the Bedroom and for the same
reason. Mrs. Vanderbilt found them too risqué. 769 The replacements depict fêtes champêtres.
They are copies of works by Nicholas Lancret including Le Concert Pastoral, Le Jeu de Quatre
Coins, Les Deux Amis, L'Automne, and Le Jeu de Colin-Maillard. 770 It is not known exactly when
the paintings were replaced or who did the copies. In 1951 the woodwork was washed. 771 The
silk-embroidered draperies were replaced in 1972 to 1980 with somewhat simplified but welldone
reproductions. The rug has been removed.
The fireplace shows little evidence of use. After Louise's death in 1926 Frederick closed
up this suite of rooms and they were not used. The Boudoir survives with a very high degree of
integrity.
Mrs. Vanderbilt's Bathroom
Drawings and elevations for this room show that the original proposal by Codman was
for an elaborate marble bath on the south wall with an elaborate fountain on the north wall. The
scheme was never carried out. Mrs. Vanderbilt's Bathroom is like the others: white tile and
fixtures. The placement of the tub, commode, and sink is as indicated on the McKim, Mead &
White floor plan.
Second Floor Guest Rooms
The Second Floor Guest Rooms including the Large Red Room, Small Red Room, Blue
Room, Mauve Room, and Green Room 772 were all treated in a similar manner. By combining
the information available for the individual rooms a clearer picture of their design and execution
is possible. All of the rooms shared similar original wallpaper: French hand-colored grounds
with embossing and block printing over. 773 The papers differ only in the background color and
pattern of the embossed design.
One set of drawings exists for the Mauve Room, done by Georges Glaenzer and dated
June 10, 1897. This indicates that the Vanderbilts were talking to Codman and Glaenzer
simultaneously. The room was not executed as designed by Glaenzer. The numbering sequence
769 Mrs. Van Alen Bruguiere said: "The paintings that Codman had used in the original decoration were
so unpleasant to Mrs. Vanderbilt that they were removed and the present paintings took their place."
(Bruguiere visit June 5, 1951, Vanderbilt report # 23.)
770 See file on paintings VAMA General File, ROVA Curatorial Division, Mrs. Vanderbilt's Bedroom. For
more on Lancret's Paintings see: Georges Wildenstein, Lancret (Paris: Les Beaux-Arts Edition D'Etudes
et de Documents Chez Georges Servant, 1924) for further information about the original paintings.
771 Memo November 30, 1951, Museum Preparator to Superintendent, VAMA.
772 The Green Room is now known as the Little Mauve Room. The original paper was green, and the key
closet in the Housekeeper's Office refers to this as the Green Room.
773 Deborah Diament of A.L. Diament & Co., very kindly examined copies of the papers. She believes
that the papers were made by one of three French firms: Zuber, Paul Dumas, or Defosse & Karth, all of
which Diament represented. There were no references to the Vanderbilt Mansion in the extant Diament
Papers which Ms. Diament reviewed. (Letter Deborah Diament to Nina Gray, January 8, 1999.)
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