POTW: Opening the Pocket Doors: Who Goes There?

There are so many details in the décor and architecture throughout 128 Pierrepont Street. Some of the more noticeable ones immediately pop out to visitors, like the stained glass laylight and windows or the busts on the façade. But some of the intricate details are so small that you would easily miss them if you didn’t know where to look. A Center for Brooklyn History staff favorite historic detail seen throughout the building is the owl escutcheon that is fixated on each antique doorknob plate. The escutcheon covers the keyhole located right underneath the doorknobs emblazoned with a monogram of the initials of the original institution (LIHS for the Long Island Historical Society). While owls can have several different symbolic meanings, their most recognizable is to symbolize wisdom. This makes owls a popular motif used for libraries, universities, or other places of learning. While the antique doorknobs no longer require keys, thus rendering the keyholes and their protective covers useless, the owls themselves remain a charming feature from our building’s past. The next time you visit CBH, make sure to keep an eye out for our escutcheons! Or while you're visiting the Othmer library on the second floor, try to see if you can find our owl, Edna (named for LIHS librarian, Edna Huntington), who was designed to look like our escutcheons.  

The Brooklyn Historical Society Institutional Archive Project is generously funded by the Leon Levy Foundation.

Interested in seeing more photos from CBH’s collections? Visit our online image gallery, which includes a selection of our images, or the digital collections portal at Brooklyn Public Library. We welcome appointments to research our entire collection of images, archives, maps, and special collections. Our reference staff is available to help with your research! You can reach us at cbhreference@bklynlibrary.org.