For $25M, a Flatiron penthouse in a golden cupola, with Manhattan at your feet

If you’re asking $25 million for a Manhattan condo, even if it’s a mansion-sized penthouse with Empire State Building views and a Fifth Avenue address, it had better occupy a gilded sky dome atop a neighborhood landmark. With that qualification met, this extravagant duplex atop the Sohmer Piano Building at 170 Fifth Avenue–the listing calls it a “Renaissance rocket ship”–has more grand gestures to offer: The seller, entrepreneur Greg Carr, has pledged the home’s sale proceeds toward his highly-regarded philanthropic project, the rebuilding of a decimated national wildlife park in Mozambique.

With 5,000 square feet of interior living space, the penthouse rivals any covetable Manhattan condo with lofty ceilings and city skyline views. Occupying the top two floors of a Neo-classical Beaux-Arts building adjacent to the Flatiron building in the Ladies Mile Historic District, the penthouse has been meticulously renovated to resemble the discreet beige-wrapped trophy homes in nearby new developments.

What those residences lack, however, is the iconic gold dome that caps a two-story octagonal cupola, forming a private sanctuary wrapped with panoramic city skyline views punctuated by the Empire State Building, the Flatiron Building, and Madison Square Park.

Good cause or no, an eight-figure property can’t skimp on function, as evidenced by the top-floor, top-tier eat-in kitchen surrounded by dazzling dining and living rooms. These entertaining and living spaces are topped by an 80-foot span of greenhouse-style windows for day and nighttime views of the sky above.

A circular limestone staircase rises between sweeping double foyers; this floor also offers an inspirational home exercise room. At the apartment’s zenith, the building’s entire roof deck is a private perch for gazing at the surrounding city.

A lavish corner primary suite has three exposures and 35 linear feet of closet space. The attendant bath is light-filled and lovely, anchored by a Waterworks soaking tub.

There are three additional bedrooms on this floor, served by two luxurious baths. Each is a private palace in its own right, with enviable views of the city and sky.

Built in 1898, the building bears the name of the Sohmer Piano Company, as it was once home to the company’s showroom and offices. It was converted to a residential condominium in 1999, after which time its historic features underwent a full restoration. Carr purchased the penthouse for $7.1 million in 2001.

[Listing details: 170 Fifth Avenue, PH at CityRealty]

[At Sotheby’s International Realty by Lawrence Treglia and Claire Groome]

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