Newly released photographs and letters from Jeffrey Epstein’s Upper East Side townhouse in Manhattan by The New York Times have continued the current scrutiny of the notorious financier’s interior design and opulent, disturbing social life.
Located at 9 East 71 St., the Herbert N. Straus House is a spaceous seven‑story mansion facing Central Park, once valued between $56 million and $77 million, and originally listed for $88 million before selling for $51 million in 2021 to a former Goldman Sachs executive, according to Town and Country.
Inside, the décor reflected Epstein’s unsettling aesthetic. A sculpture of a bronze bride, suspended by rope above the stairwell, dominated the atrium, while dozens of framed prosthetic eyeballs lined the entry hall. A stuffed tiger — reportedly perched on a plush rug near a chandelier-lit room — made the bizarre taxidermy collection oddly spellbinding, the New York Post reports.
Another odd detail: a first edition of Vladimir Nabokov’s “Lolita” was on display in his office. That novel’s dark narrative-about a man’s sexual obsession with a 12-year-old-mirrored the somewhat creepy nickname given to Epstein’s private jet, the “Lolita Express.”
The home also featured multiple surveillance cameras, including some placed in bedrooms and adjacent rooms. In the “massage room,” images depict erotic nude paintings, shelves stocked with lubricant, and a large silver ball and chain, according to photos reviewed by The New York Times. And, there were “secret” rooms, such as a media room hidden behind a secret door.
Personal photographs displayed throughout the mansion showed Epstein with globally significant figures: from Donald Trump and Melania to Bill Clinton, Elon Musk, Fidel Castro, Pope John Paul II, and Mohammed bin Salman. One framed $1 bill reportedly signed by Bill Gates had the message “I was wrong!”
These newly disclosed images and documents build on previous reporting, which described bizarre features such as naked mannequins draped from chandeliers, intimated surveillance systems, and a prison-yard mural of Epstein.
This New York Times exclusive comes at a time when there have been calls from the public and politicans for Trump to release the full Epstein files.
Epstein was arrested on July 6, 2019, and charged with sex trafficking and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors. He was found dead in his jail cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan on Aug. 10, 2019, while awaiting trial. The New York City Medical Examiner ruled his death a suicide by hanging.
555
555′”