Buildings in New York come down constantly, but their best parts do not always go with them. Doorknobs, stained glass, iron gates, chandeliers that once hung over rooms nobody living has seen.
All of it gets pulled out ahead of the wrecking crews and given somewhere else to be.
One shop in New York has spent thirty years treating what other people call debris as inventory worth saving. Two full floors of salvage sit inside, and you can put your hands on any of it without buying a museum ticket first…