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Rosenbach Museum & Library
Rating Details »
Categories: Museums, Art Galleries [Edit]
Neighborhood: Rittenhouse Square2008-2010 Delancey Pl
Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 732-1600
- Hours:
Tue. 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Wed. 10:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Thu-Sun. 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
- Price Range:
-
$
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
5 reviews for Rosenbach Museum & Library
On my recent trip to Philadelphia, I visited no less than 6 museums, and the Rosenbach may have been my favorite.
Not only does this place (the former home of two brothers) house all their fabulous furniture, art and general history. But you also get the crown jewel, the rare books. I went with a friend (we both work in book-related fields), and we were both kind of aflutter over this: Here's the collection of Maurice Sendak! And the works of Marianne Moore! An original manuscript of "Ulysses"! Notes by Bram Stoker about "Dracula" on Bellevue Hotel stationery! The papers of Joseph Conrad! And on and on. It was almost too much for someone of a scholarly bent to take in at once. It's also amazing that you can apply to do research here and make use of the works.
Beyond the books, I really liked seeing the wrought (not cast) iron gates made by Samuel Yellin (we later saw similar ones by him at the art museum as well). They were stunning, not to mention the fact that the symmetry was amazing for something made by hand out of iron and teased into delicate shapes.
The three staff members we interacted with were courtly in manner yet laid back. The gift shop was small yet well appointed.
Overall, a wonderful museum experience on a more intimate scale. I would certainly return or recommend it to anyone.
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My friend had free passes for the Maurice Sendak exhibit a few months back, and luckily he invited me to go with him. It was my one and only visit to the Rosenbach, and I was impressed. Just walking down Delancey Street felt grand, despite the fact that it was raining and we were both soaking wet and I had a bagel and bottle of champagne in my coat pocket.
They greeted us eagarly, showed us to a coatroom where we hung our soggy jackets. The exhibit was extensive, spanning a couple of rooms. Our favorite part was the video clips- my friend liked the video interviews enough that he bought the DVD, I bought two Sendak books in the well-stocked gift shop.
We decided to take the house tour, which I recommend. It was nice to take in a little history about the mansion, which is beautiful and well-preserved. There were a bunch of interesting facts and anticdotes about the Rosenbach brothers, their mansion and their extensive collections. They have some pretty rare books there, shrouded under velvet. It was pretty fancy. Towards the end of the tour I became a little bored and our tour guide became a little long-winded, but I'm glad we took advantage of the house tour while we were there.
There's a Lincoln exhibit up now I really want to see!
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Are you a bibliophile? Does the smell of libraries and used bookstores kinda turn you on? Or are you simultaneously obsessed with Maurice Sendak and wish you could see what a classy Rittenhouse brownstone looked like circa 1930?
I finally made it here with a friend for the excellent Sendak exhibit, which was filled with original sketches and some fascinating interviews with the man himself. Since we had already paid the fee, we decided to take the house tour as well. We had a hopped-up volunteer guide who managed to talk for an hour straight without taking a breath. But I enjoyed the chance to time-travel into a preserved urban mansion from the mid-century, which was home to the Rosenbach brothers. One was a bookseller and the other collected antiques, so the house is basically a stunning private library and a small museum of high-quality carpets, furniture, and paintings.
The Rosenbach isn't for everyone. If you're totally uninterested in rare books and you're only mildly enchanted by Sendak, I recommend that you hit the nearby Mütter instead. But if you're a hopeless bookworm or antiquarian, you should check this place out.
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For scholars and researchers, the Rosenbach has volumes of rare and collectible books. But for the visitor, there weren't as many books on display as I'd hoped. The museum, located in the Rosenbachs' former home, seemed more focused on the furniture and history of the family. Since I'm not a fan of the decorative arts, I was disappointed. I was almost tempted to buy some "James Joyce Ulysses" chocolate bars. Then I regained my senses.
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After deciding that I have turned into a boring person and need to do more interesting things, I RSVP'd to attend a exhibit and discussion of Maurice Sendak's monsters at the Rosenbach Museum. I walked over after work and entered the building to a wall of blank stares. "So you're here for the.......?" I said I was here for the discussion and was pointed into the exhibit room until the discussion started. The room was the size of a large closet and it took me about 2 minutes to work my way through it. Since I now had 40 minutes to kill before the discussion started, I sat on one of the (very fluffy and comfortable) benches and pretended to read something while I eavesdropped on everyone's conversations. Everyone seemed so pretentious and the thought of being involved in a discussion with them for an hour fueled a panic inside me that grew and grew until 5:57 when I bolted out the door. I will definitely go back to check out other exhibits and take a tour of the house, which is included in admission price, but I will not be signing up for any more discussions!
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