clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Incredible Beaux Arts home on Delancey Place lists for $5.78M

The limestone home is steeped in history and luxury

A Beaux Arts-style limestone rowhome in Philly’s Rittenhouse Square neighborhood.
This 1860s townhouse on Delancey Place is on the market for $5.7 million.
Courtesy of Joanne Davidow, BHHS Fox & Roach-CC Rittenhouse Hotel

An incredible home that sits on one of Rittenhouse Square’s most coveted streets has hit the market to the tune of $5,785,000, making it one of the priciest pads for sale in the city.

If you’ve ever strolled down the 2100 block of Delancey Place, chances are this home has caught your eye. The limestone facade stands out from the rest of the brownstones—although it was originally built in the Federal style in 1860, it was later recast in 1918 the Beaux Arts-style by local firm DeArmond, Ashmead & Bickley.

One of its most notable residents was Nobel Prize winner and writer Pearl Buck, who bought the home in 1964 and wrote her short story collection “Once upon a Christmas" here. Clearly inspired by the impressive home, she once wrote, “I knew the moment I entered that house it was the right one. But the house itself is beautiful in its simplicity and its lines. It is a French house, more than a century old.”

Today, the stately home clocks in at 7,505 square feet and features five bedrooms, five full baths, and four half baths. Nearly all of the rooms are, as expected, pretty spectacular. Says listing agent Joanne Davidow, “It’s probably the most gorgeous facade in the city. And when you walk through the doors, it takes your breath away. I’ve never seen a staircase like this in a regular townhouse.”

Speaking of stairs, there’s also an elevator.

The current owners who have lived here since 2006 spent two years restoring the home with the help of designer Malcolm Eisenberg. The metal door was custom-made by local blacksmith Samuel Yellin, and the top floor of the home was opened up and turned into a light-filled studio. There’s also a new garage.

Take a tour of the jaw-dropping digs below. Want to see it in person? There’s an open house scheduled for Sunday, October 29 from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m.