The Weld Boathouse serves the students and faculty of Harvard University. Constructed in 1906, this Tudor-style boathouse has been an integral part of Harvard's rowing tradition. Overlooking the river's tranquil waters, the boathouse serves as a hub for the university's rowing programs.

The building continued to serve various congregations until it ceased functioning as a synagogue in 1976.Since 1979, it has been repurposed as studios and residences for local artists .​

The Hebrew inscription on the arch reads, “This is the gateway to the Lord the righteous shall enter through it,” from Psalms 118:20.

The Harry Elkins Widener Memorial Library, situated in Harvard Yard, stands as Harvard University's flagship library and a central hub for research in the humanities and social sciences. The library was established in memory of Harry Elkins Widener, a Harvard alumnus from the Class of 1907 and an avid book collector who tragically perished in the sinking of the RMS Titanic in 1912. Designed in the Beaux-Arts style by the architectural firm Horace Trumbauer & Associates, the library's chief designer was Julian Abele, one of the first professionally trained African-American architects in the United States.

The building replaced the earlier Gore Hall and features a grand staircase flanked by parapet walls, leading to an imposing façade adorned with classical columns .

Harvard is an open campus, and the public are normally welcome to stroll and photograph on campus.

Built in 1889, the terminal is Romanesque Revival in style. The interior features included a large waiting room, ticketing areas, concourse, English glazed tiles on walls. Iron trusses supporting ceilings, and skylights to admit light over the waiting room. By the turn of the 20th century the terminal handled huge volumes: 30,000–50,000 people per day, with hundreds of trains and many ferry runs.

After many train lines were rerouted through Newark in the 1960’s, CRRNJ declared bankruptcy and abandoned the property. It was renovated and included as part of Liberty State Park in 1975 as a historic site.

Parts of the Jersey City skyline, most prominently, 30 Hudson Street, also known as the Goldman Sachs Tower, are in the background.

Though an apartment block, it was specifically designed to appeal to Harvard students, offering a level of comfort and refinement uncommon in Mid-Cambridge at the time. The first floor is Constructed in light Scotch brick to contrast to the red brick of the remaining floors. A belt course of Indiana limestone runs above the fourth story.

Ware Hall was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. Nowadays, you can rent or buy an apartment there.

A new lighting design in 2015 beautifully shows off the Beaux-Arts facade of the museum after dark. The facade of the central building, seen here, was designed by Richard Morris Hunt and was opened to the public in 1902. The north and south wings were added a few years later, designed by Charles Follen McKim for the firm of McKim, Mead, and White in the same neoclassical, Beaux Arts style as the center building.

This view shows one of the two, 48-jet programmable granite fountains, located in the David H. Koch Plaza. Redesigned in 2014-2015, these modern, year-round, energy-efficient fountains feature synchronized light (LED) and water shows, replacing 1970s-era fountains, The plaza includes granite borders around the fountains for seating. 

The Art Deco style of Suburban Station’s exterior is expressed through materials, ornament, and geometric articulation typical of the movement. The 16th Street street-level facade features a polished black granite base that gives a strong, refined visual weight to the entrances. Art Deco is all about geometric abstraction and clean lines, and Suburban’s facade reflects this with chevrons, zigzags, and stylized motifs integrated into spandrels and decorative bands.

The Royal Liver Building is one of Liverpool's most iconic landmarks and a key component of the city's UNESCO World Heritage Waterfront. Recognizable by its two clock towers topped with the mythical Liver Birds, the building is a symbol of Liverpool's maritime heritage and architectural grandeur. Originally built 1908-1911 as the headquarters for the Royal Liver Assurance group, the building was designed to provide office space and serve as a symbol of the company's strength and stability.

The building was designed in the Baroque Revival style with a blend of modern influences. It features two prominent clock towers, each standing 98.2 meters (322 feet) tall. The clocks are larger than those of Big Ben in London. Atop each tower are the Liver Birds, mythical creatures that are said to protect the city. Each bird is 5.5 meters (18 feet) high and has a wingspan of 3.6 meters (12 feet).

Museum of Liverpool was conceived as a sculptural composition of inclined and elevated platforms, creating dynamic geometry that contrasts to the traditional lines of the surrounding historic buildings.

The larger-than-life bronze statue is of the famous Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, best known for his fairy tales like The Ugly Duckling, The Little Mermaid, and Thumbelina.

Andersen is shown seated on a polished pink granite bench, with an open book on his lap — its pages turned to The Ugly Duckling — reading to a small bronze duckling at his feet. The sculpture was created by American sculptor Georg John Lober, with the bench designed by Otto F. Langmann.

As for the young woman, not only is she fashionably-dressed, she is carrying a very fashionable Little Brown Bag from Bloomingdale’s, a simple kraft-paper bag with twisted handles that itself became a fashion statement and symbol of New York City chic. The minimalist design, created by Massimo Vignelli, intentionally left off the store's name at first, making it a curiosity that people wanted to carry, turning it into a status symbol. \

The vaulted ceilings of the Washington, D.C. Metro are one of those “secret wow” features most people only notice once they really look around underground. They’re not just functional; they’re a kind of dramatic architectural statement — and a big part of what makes riding the Metro feel so different from other U.S. subway systems.

Architect Harry Weese, who led the design for the original Metro, wanted to create spaces that felt more like public spaces or civic halls than cramped subway tunnels. The lofty vaults help with that. The coffered vaults echo the Roman Pantheon and other monumental vaulted spaces — but done in raw concrete, giving it a modern, Brutalist twist.

So next time you’re on a D.C. Metro platform, look up! Those ceilings aren’t just there to keep the earth from falling on your head — they’re part of a grand idea to make the subway feel like a public architectural space, not just a way to get from A to B.

The famed LOVE sculpture was created by American artist Robert Indiana and is based on his 1964 design featuring the stacked letters L-O-V-E with the tilted O. The sculpture now in LOVE Park is the same, original work that was first placed there in 1976 as part of the U.S. Bicentennial celebration. After the Bicentennial, it was briefly removed in 1978, but due to popular demand, local businessman F. Eugene “Fitz” Dixon Jr. purchased it and donated it to the City, allowing it to stay permanently in the plaza.

The sculpture has become one of Philadelphia’s most recognizable landmarks, lending the park its popular name (LOVE Park) and drawing countless photos, proposals, and gatherings over the decades.

Paris’s most iconic Art Nouveau Métropolitain canopies, affectionately dubbed libellules (French for "dragonflies"), were designed by Hector Guimard around the turn of the 20th century. These delicate structures feature fan-shaped glass roofs supported by sinuous, cast-iron ribs—evoking the wings of a dragonfly. Beyond aesthetics, they cleverly channel rain into a central gutter that drains downward, keeping stairs dry.

A unique feature of this recent building is that the developer retained the State Street facade of the 1891 Boston Stock Exchange building as well as a short piece of the old facade on Congress Street.

I'm not fond of the architecture of this period, but this is an exception. It's zig-zag tower with rounded edges, black gridwork, and dark blue windows make for a dramatic view.

The Old State House, at the intersection of State and Washington Streets in Boston, was the seat of the government of the Colony of Massachusetts from its completion in 1713 until 1776. The Lion and Unicorn on the roof are taken from the coat of arms of the United Kingdom.

From 1776, it was the seat of state government, after which it was replaced by the "new" Massachusetts State House in 1798.

From this viewpoint, the Old State House is backed by One Boston Place. That building is a rather tedious 41-floor 1970's box, but its dark color does dramatically set off our elegant Georgian-style building.

I was happy to be asked by Redfin to contribute my own Hidden Gem, which you will see as the third item in the article.

Regarded as “The City of Brotherly Love,” Philadelphia, PA is best known for its rich history, world-famous cheesesteaks, and vibrant art and music culture. While there are many famous attractions to check out like the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, and the LOVE statue, there are also many lesser-known hidden gems that only a local would know about. Whether you are considering living in Philadelphia, renting an apartment in the Washington Square West neighborhood, or just playing tourist for the week, we reached out to locals to share their best-hidden gems in Philadelphia from favorite restaurants to must-see locations. See what they had to share.

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