Boston, MA
75 State Street
Scope/Solutions
The use of gold leaf in Boston dates back nearly 300 years. This material, however, was untried and unproven on a large scale for modern buildings in Boston until the construction of 75 State Street in the late 1980s. The design featured approximately 5,000 sq ft of gold leaf on thin granite veneer wall panels and depended on a durable installation of gold leaf. SGH evaluated the technology and its applicability to the granite for this thirty-one story building.
SGH’s work for this project included the following:
- Review of gold leaf application and existing gilding techniques
- Laboratory testing to evaluate the effects of long-term weathering and thermal moisture cycling of gold leaf on the granite substrate
- Development of procedures for gilding, substrate preparation, handling, and in-service treatment (e.g., protection from window washing rig rollers)
- Post-construction development of a five-part facade maintenance program to guide inspections, upkeep, and repairs
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Project Summary
1992
Completion Date
Solutions
Preservation
Services
Building Enclosures | Applied Science & Research
Markets
Commercial
Client(s)
Brookfield Financial Properties
Specialized Capabilities
Condition Assessments | Preservation | Environmental Simulations | Materials Science
Additional Projects
Northeast
Van Ness
The Van Ness offers offices, apartments, retail space, and below-grade parking in Boston’s Fenway neighborhood. SGH consulted on the building enclosure, including property line below-grade waterproofing, curtain wall, cladding, unitized wall panels, roofing, and the landscaped plaza.
Northeast
New Hampshire State House
The monumental dome on the New Hampshire State House is gilded in gold leaf. After regilding in the early 1990s, the gold leaf started discoloring. SGH investigated the discoloration and subsequently worked on the regilding project.