Private Rio

Rio de Janeiro is renowned as one of the world's most alluring and sophisticated cities of exciting high life, but beyond its veil of glamour, the city discreetly conceals a hidden world of history and tradition, artistic treasures, and a solid cultural inheritance unknown to most outsiders. And now, for the first time, this book opens the doors to the great private residences of Rio and its surroundings, giving the reader a privileged view into one of the most alluring places in all of the Americas. Twenty-one of Rio's most captivating homes and their gardens, representative of over 300 years, from colonial times through the monarchy and to the present, grace the pages of Private Rio. While the book illustrates the whole range of Rio's living styles, from townhouses in the city to penthouses high above it, and from beach houses to lavish country homes, each one has been chosen not only because of its obvious physical charm or beauty, but also because it has played a role in the history or in the lives of important personalities of Rio's social, economic, or political evolution.