Book and Snake Tomb

The building on the corner of High Street and Grove Street is the home of one of Yale’s most mysterious secret societies: Book and Snake. Sitting on a rectangular lot enclosed by an imposing iron fence with intermittent stone posts, the building’s sleek marble exterior and grand Greek-style columns on the front façade evoke a robust sense of importance (3). Like many other of Yale’s secret societies, this elaborate meeting hall is referred as a “tomb” and has no windows, further adding to the aura of mystery. The tomb was originally constructed as a gathering place for the Society of Book and Snake and it currently serves the same purpose. However, much like the contents of the interior of the tomb, the contents, purposes, and inner-workings of the society itself are shrouded in secrecy. (1,3)