Wildenstein Family’s Limestone Mansion Is Back on the Market With a $100 Million Price Tag

Qatar walked away from $90 million deal two years ago.

Photo by Jim Henderson, Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.

The scandal-plagued Wildenstein family’s limestone mansion on 64th street street just off Central Park is back on the market after a $90 million deal with Qatar—which reportedly had intended to use the building as a consulate—fell through. The art dealing dynasty has slapped an extra $10 million onto the price tag.

No interior images were available on the Cushman and Wakefield web listing, and agents had not responded to artnet News’ request by publication time. According to the listing, the mansion was designed by Gilded Age architect Horace Trumbauer and has “soaring 20 foot ceilings on the ground, second, and third floors,” as well as a paneled elevator and sweeping staircase that connects reception rooms to offices and meeting rooms on the upper floors.

Franco-American art-dealer Guy Wildenstein leaves the Paris courthouse on January 4, 2016, after the first day in the trial of several members of the Wildenstein art-dealing dynasty on charges of tax fraud and money-laundering. Several members of the Wildenstein art-dealing dynasty went on trial in Paris on January 4 charged with stashing hundreds of millions of euros in inheritance money out of reach of the French taxman. Family patriarch Guy Wildenstein, 70, faces up to 10 years in prison for tax fraud and money laundering in a multi-generational inheritance squabble worthy of a soap opera. Courtesy of Alain Jocard/AFP/Getty Images.

Franco-American art-dealer Guy Wildenstein leaves the Paris courthouse on January 4, 2016, after the first day in the trial of several members of the Wildenstein art-dealing dynasty on charges of tax fraud and money-laundering. Several members of the Wildenstein art-dealing dynasty went on trial in Paris on January 4 charged with stashing hundreds of millions of euros in inheritance money out of reach of the French taxman. Family patriarch Guy Wildenstein, 70, faces up to 10 years in prison for tax fraud and money laundering in a multi-generational inheritance squabble worthy of a soap opera. Courtesy of Alain Jocard/AFP/Getty Images.

On the third floor, “an entire paneled salon that was in Talleyrand’s 18th Century Parisian townhouse has been re-assembled within the building as an executive office.” The building is available for long-term lease or sale.

Two years ago, when Qatar pulled out of the $90 million purchase agreement, just one day before closing, observers speculated that the country’s officials were opting for a lower profile in the wake of the FIFA scandal, according to reports. Others said it was because of the black mark left by Guy Wildenstein’s money laundering schemes. The Wildenstein family sued and the case was settled out of court, according to Bloomberg.

The family has owned the property for 90 years. It is one of several assets they are trying to unload to raise cash. Other pending sales include Guy Wildenstein’s property at Sutton Square (also on the Upper East side), and 110 of the family’s racehorses, being offered at Ireland’s Goffs auction house in September.

Guy Wildenstein was accused in France of tax fraud and money laundering for trying to hide artworks and assets he inherited from his father. He is currently involved in a major lawsuit in France.


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