Both a private library and an art gallery, the Athenæum gives outsiders an insider's perspective on Boston Brahmin society. The city's leading families founded the members-only library in 1807 to make "the great works of learning and science in all languages" available to members. The arts component was added in 1827, and the building is now filled with artwork. Only the first floor is open to the public, but that's plenty -- you'll get a sense of the spirit of self-improvement that inspired the members. Docent-led tours (offered twice weekly, by reservation only; tel. 617/227-0270, ext. 279) show off the Palladian-inspired sandstone building, replete with soaring galleries and hideaway nooks, that backs up to the Old Granary Burying Ground. Completed in 1849 and expanded in 1913-15, it was extensively renovated around the turn of the 21st century. Offerings within usually include exhibits in the compact art gallery; sometimes there are also readings, concerts, and, on rare occasions, public viewings of the library's most famous holding: an 1847 volume bound in the author's skin.

Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Boston 2009, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.

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