[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/POLITICS/11/10/obama.bush/art.wh.afp.gi.jpg caption="President Bush and Laura Bush welcome Barack and Michelle Obama to the White House on Monday."]
(CNN) - President Bush and first lady Laura Bush welcomed President-elect Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle Obama, to the White House on Monday afternoon.
Bush and Obama held a private meeting in the Oval Office, while the first lady gave the incoming first lady a tour of the residence.
The president and president-elect walked together along the colonnade by the Rose Garden before entering the Oval Office together. They briefly waved to reporters along the way.
Obama and Bush were not expected to speak on camera following their meeting.
An aide to Obama said they were "going to let the pictures speak for themselves."
The two met in the Oval Office for just over an hour. When President George H.W. Bush hosted President-elect Bill Clinton after the 1992 election, the two talked for nearly two hours.
Monday's meeting was a historic formality, but it was also a time for serious talks. It marked the first time that Obama has visited the Oval Office.