An $11 million mansion

Behold the most expensive home sold on the Massachusetts mainland last year: "Seahome," a 12,000 square foot Manchester-by-the-Sea mansion on its own private peninsula, sold for $11 million in August, 2007. The data comes from the Warren Group.

The 4.5 acre property includes a "tea house" about the size of the average American home, a private beach and a deep-water dock -- which is no small matter in a town where the wait for a mooring permit is about a decade. The main home includes about eight bedrooms, depending on how you count, two kitchens, a conservatory and an indoor waterfall, according to a write-up in the Gloucester Daily News.

The buyers, Mark and Becky Levin, are part of the new Boston elite: He's the former chief executive of a Millennium Pharmaceuticals; she runs Levin and Co., an executive search firm that works with biotech companies.

The house is relic of the Brahmin past. It was built in the 1880s as a summer home for Robert Hooper, who established the Boston Terrier as a distinct dog breed. His 1908 obituary in the New York Times is a gem:

MANCHESTER, Mass., Aug. 13 --- Robert C. Hooper, member of one of the oldest Boston families, and prominent in horse circles and club life of the city, died here tonight at his Summer home, following a short illness. He was one of the original promoters of the revival of steeplechases in the United States, and on several occasions won the Grand National Steeplechase on New York tracks. He was 60 years of age.

This year's most expensive home may sit nearby. The Salem News reports that another Manchester mansion is now on the market for $14.6 million.

(Please note: I'm not sure why Warren Group isn't counting John Henry's $16 million purchase of Frank McCourt's Brookline mansion, which happened about the same time last year. I've put in a call to the Warren Group, and I'll update if I get an answer.

UPDATE (1:12 pm): The Warren Group says it doesn't count because it was a two-parcel sale.