A Manhattan mansion has been put on the market for an asking price of $51 million after being the home to a philosophy school for nearly 40 years.The Charles Ogden Mansion at 12 East 79th street in New York City’s Upper East Side has been owned by the School of Practical Philosophy since 1975.The non-profit bought it from the Ogden family who built the mansion in 1901 to 1903.The grandiose building was originally designed as two separate homes, with No 12 being built for Mary F Ogden and No 14 for her brother, Charles W Ogden, according to the real estate company dealing with the property, Brown Harris Stevens.Charles was a well-known in the real estate industry and held title for both properties until he died in 1935 when the deed to No 12 was transferred to Mary, with the restriction that it be used solely as a private residence.The Neo-Georgian home is 16,000 square feet, seven stories, and 28 feet wide, with iron fences, open urns, broad low stoops, and service entries on the lower level.It is also just steps, literally just about three, from Central Park.The block on which this mansion is located has been dubbed as the choicest plot of land in the city as it is the only one on all of Fifth Avenue on the Upper East Side that does not have an 18-story apartment building.This was made possible by Henry Cook, who originally owned the entire block of Fifth to Madison Avenues, from East 79th to East 78th Streets, according to the real estate company dealing with the property, Brown Harris Stevens.Cook limited the height of all buildings with deed restrictions that persist to this day. Characterized by their bowed bays, 12 and 14 East 79th Street feature brick and limestone facades. Roman brick walls on the upper floors feature limestone trim. Two additional floors above the balustrade were added to this building in 1960.The lowest level of the residence has windows front and back as well as two separate entries to East 79th Street.The current owners of the building have had their share of controversy.The UK-based 'cult-like' organization, also called the School of Economic Science, has been criticised for being a religious movement.Secret Cult, a 1984 book by London Evening Standard reporters Peter Hounam and Andrew Hogg, alleged the organization was a secretive cult which aimed to establish psychological control over its members and had caused personality change, mental breakdown and divorce. The organization’s website says their aim is ‘to offer students the inspiration and systematic guidance needed to enjoy fuller, richer and more productive lives; to evolve the spiritual aspect of their beings; and to serve society to the best of their abilities’.It says its critics ‘greatly misrepresent the aims and activities of the School, but they have alerted it to the need to provide more information about the way its courses and associated activities progress’.The school says it has used the building for ‘institutional’ purposes but now wants to sell the property to move into a larger space.Notable members include former Liberal Party chairman Roger Pincham, M&C Saatchi chairman Jeremy Sinclair and Hollywood actor Hugh Jackman.(dailymail.co.uk)ANN.Az