METROPOLITAN LIFE INSURANCE BUILDING

A View from Madison Square Park

The design and concept of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Building by architect Piere LeBrun was inspired by the architecture of the campanile in Venice’s Piazza San Marco.  The tall tower of this building, which faces Madison Square Park, was added to the original structure in 1893 making it the tallest in the world.  The Woolworth Building, at a high of 792 feet, would claim that title when completed in 1913.  

Located by Madison Square Park at Fifth Avenue and 23rd Street, the building is diagonally across from the more famous Flatiron Building and only a few blocks from the Empire State Building,  Met Life moved its offices to 200 Park Avenue at the original Pan Am building which towers over Grand Central Terminal.