PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — The Rosenbach Museum and Library in Philadelphia is a dream come true for bibliophiles, history lovers, and anyone who wants to learn more about their favorite book.

The museum offers many educational programs to the public, including Behind the Library presentations; a guided tour through one of the many curated books in their massive collection.

During the October tour, a small group gathers for a deep dive into one of the most influential gothic horror masterpieces of all time. Dracula: The Enduring Monster offers fans the chance to hold the first-edition novel, read the author’s handwritten and typewritten notes as he writes, and glimpse the first official artwork of the novel’s antagonist.

More than a century later, the novel Bram Stoker wrote over the course of seven years is still influential and read by audiences around the world.

The library houses Stoker’s original notes and 100-page drafts, early ideas for the novel, the author’s folklore research, and first editions of the novel. Fans will be able to touch and feel the hardcover first edition and see Stoker’s autograph up close and personal.

They can also check out the first paperback containing the earliest image of Dracula that Stoker was able to see before he died.

WRISTWATCH: See more from Rosenbach’s Behind the Bookcase presentation in this expanded version of our report

Visitors who register for the event are guided past a series of bookshelves containing 400,000 rare books, manuscripts and works of art.

This is what Edward G. Pettit, Sunstein Senior Program Manager in Rosenbach, lives for. He is the tour host and narrator of this journey to one of the most influential works in the history of literature.

“They can handle the notes and we’ll distribute them. The first edition is signed by Stoker. This is a wonderful exploration of the concept and development of a novel that people are still reading today, 125 years after publication.”

It’s an unforgettable experience for fans of the novel and anyone familiar with the impressive work of a vampire that persists in pop culture to this day.

“That’s what connects you when you talk about literature,” Pettit says. “The books are original editions, the manuscripts you have are exactly what the author wrote. This excitement never disappears. You are not just talking about the notes in a book, you are showing them yourself. This is the history of literature.”

Behind the Library is just one of the many programs offered at Rosenbach.

You can join them for personal guided tours, cocktail hours, reading courses and much more from deep inside their magnificent collection of rare books and manuscripts.

For more information please visit: https://rosenbach.org