In 1927, the building at Herengracht 502 was donated to the City of Amsterdam by the then owner to serve as the mayor's residence. Built in 1671 as a residence for a merchant of the West India Company, it was owned by several wealthy families until 1927. Four chronological chapters describe in detail the history of the house: its construction, its various renovations, its furnishings over the centuries and its inhabitants. Both authors have done extensive research on the canal house in the past, commissioned by Bureau Monumenten & Archeologie of the City of Amsterdam and the Amsterdam Museum. Architectural-historical descriptions are interspersed with more frivolous details such as the exorbitant price of a wedding dress and the criminal record of an architect, creating a vivid picture of the house and its inhabitants. It makes clear how changing demands of residents over time affect a building.