A Visit to the Morgan Library & Museum

There are so many museums in New York City that one can visit, and I have been to a few of them, but this past week we went to one that we had not visited before and that was the Morgan Library & Museum in midtown Manhattan. The Morgan Library & Museum began as the personal library of financier, collector, and cultural benefactor Pierpont Morgan (whose son is the famed J.P. Morgan). As early as 1890 Morgan had begun to assemble a collection of illuminated, literary, and historical manuscripts, early printed books, and old master drawings and prints. The museum is built in an Italian Renaissance-style palazzo with three magnificent rooms epitomizing America’s Age of Elegance. While we visited the museum in its entirety, below I will share the three main parts we visited as well as our afternoon tea at the cafe and a quick visit to the museum’s small but charming garden.

We visited three main parts of the museum, the historical library, the Morgan Stanley gallery, and Pierpont Morgan’s study.  Each room was exquisite and full of historical paintings and books.  The entire building was an artwork in and of itself and was envisioned by its architect to embody the Renaissance ideal of the unity of all the arts, integrating architecture, sculpture, and painting, and utilizing the finest materials and craftsmanship.

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morgan Stanley gallery

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the marble rotunda

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pierpont morgan’s study

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historic library

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afternoon tea at the morgan cafe

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After visiting the museum galleries, we went to the Morgan Cafe which is located in the center of the museum and had an afternoon tea. Everything was simply decadent and elegant. I tried a tea called Paris Assam from Harney & Sons Tea and it was so silky and tasted so good that I ordered some online that day.

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the gift shop

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I adore museum gift shops, and I will always stop in when I visit museums.  The shop at Morgan Library & Musuem was a reader’s and art lover’s haven full of books, book accessories and beautiful art inspired objects.

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the garden

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The Morgan Garden was developed by award-winning landscape designer Todd Longstaffe-Gowan and it includes periwinkle beds as well as low-height herbaceous beds. A generous grass lawn sweeps out from the modern pavilion next to the library. Bluestone pathways are laid in patterns derived from the Library’s Renaissance-inspired floors, and cobbled stonework adds visual and textural interest. The garden also displays several antiquities from the Morgan’s collection that have previously been inaccessible to the public. While the garden maybe small it is quite charming and to have a garden at all in midtown Manhattan is an impressive feat.