Astor House, Broadway, 1867 1908

Curator: This is Sidney L. Smith's "Astor House, Broadway, 1867," an etching. Editor: It feels so still, yet bustling. Like a memory carefully preserved, that grand hotel standing sentinel. Curator: The Astor House was indeed a landmark of its time, a symbol of wealth and progress in a rapidly changing New York. Look at the detail—the horse-drawn carriages, the figures on the street—it captures the energy of urban life. Editor: I see a microcosm of society. Who had access to that luxury, and whose labor built it? The etching seems to glorify a bygone era, but perhaps unintentionally reveals social stratification. Curator: Perhaps. It is a symbol of power. The hotel would have been associated with those who shaped society. Editor: Even in its elegance, I sense a call to consider the narratives it omits. Curator: I see what you mean, a reminder of the layers of history embedded in a single image.