The Laundry Room

Our astronomy club meets at the Vanderbilt Planetarium in Centerport, which is also where the Vanderbilt Mansion is located. It was the home of William K. Vanderbilt II and is called "The Eagle's Nest." When we have an observing night, we meet outside "The Laundry Room" which is underneath the mansion. Tonight, I happened to look up at the carvings over the door to the laundry room and was amazed at what I saw. There is a beautiful sun carved into the stone, and I have never noticed it before. The contrast of the lighting was extreme, from the floodlights illuminating the building. So I resorted to an HDR image which makes both the brightest and darkest parts of the photograph render properly. There were some color shifts, so I converted the color photo to black & white, and it adds to the feeling of strangeness, I think.