Almanac Volume 43 Number 29 04/08/97

Antiques and the Gift of Wholeness
"Treasures from the Past... ...Focus on the Future" is the subtitle of the Philadelphia Antiques Show, a benefit for the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania that each year, for the past 35 years, has raised money for a specific unit or department of HUP.
The 1997 Show's proceeds will create a new Maxillofacial Reconstruction Center at Penn, a center where surgery can help rebuild not only bodies but the lives of those now afflicted with birth defects, and scars from abuse and cancers. New procedures will allow pediatric and adult patients to return to a more normal and productive lifestyle. This will enable specialists to "rebuild" and reconstruct these patients to make them physically and psychologically whole. This major fund-raiser will "aid the research and clinical treatment being done at this advanced procedural Center, " said Dr. Peter Quinn, chairman of the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.
In recent years, the Show's 200 volunteers have raised approximately $400,000 annually making The Philadelphia Antiques Show one of the most profitable hospital fund-raisers in the country. Since its inception it has raised over $7 million for the advancement of patient care at the University of Pennsylvania Medical Center.

Antiques Show: April 12-16
This year the Philadelphia Antiques Show's central loan exhibition is an eclectic collection of things that tell a story of life in America before assembly lines and mass production, lent by a unique regional institution, the Mercer Museum of Bucks County, that has never before lent a major segment of its collections anywhere.
But this is a special occasion for the Mercer, for 1997 is its centennial year, and the spotlight is on its collections of 18th and 19th century artifacts that document the lives of early American settlers prior to the Industrial Revolution. Henry Chapman Mercer was an archaeologist, anthropologist and ceramist who sought to rescue and preserve the artifacts of such trades as blacksmithing, harvesting, glassblowing, woodworking, barrel-making, and whaling.
During the Show, which runs from April 12 through 16, visitors can see a healthy sampling of these, in the not-for-sale part of the annual show. It is surrounded by museum-quality American antiques that are for sale, brought by some 50 dealers from New Hampshire to New Mexico.
There are many special events scheduled such as a Children's Continental Breakfast: "Meet the Mercer" on Saturday; a Classic American Brunch and a Guide to Collecting Antique Maps both on Sunday; Exhibitors Guide to Collecting (with Continental Breakfast), Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday mornings; Supper at the Show on Tuesday.
Show admission is $12, $5 with UPMC or student ID and is included with all special events tickets. Reservations are recommended for all special events. For more information call 387-3500 or visit the web site www.med.upenn.edu/health and select "Information & Events" or type keyword "Antiques."
Proceeds of the 36th Annual Show will benefit the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at the Medical Center. As show beneficiary, the department presents a panel discussion on "Center for Maxillofacial Reconstruction: Saving Faces," 5-7 p.m. on Monday. Admission to this program is free, but RSVP to 662-3586.
The Show is held at the 103rd Engineers Armory on 33rd Street, north of Market Street. At the two locations below, shuttle service is provided every half hour to and from the Armory, Saturday through Tuesday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Wednesday 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

30th Street Station: Taxi Stand, west entrance
Penn Tower Hotel, 34th Street and Civic Center Blvd.

Photo Captions (top to bottom): Cigar Store Figure: Race Track Tout or Dandy, carved and poly-chromed wood, possibly Providence, RI, c. 1870; purchased at an antiques shop in Boston by Henry Mercer in 1917. 55 1/2" x 21 1/4".
Decorated Saltbox, polychromed wood, John Drissel, Milford Township, Bucks County, 1797; purchased from Abraham H. Rice, Bethlehem, Pa., 1920. 1 1/4" x 7 5/8" x 6 7/8".
Tin Coffee Pot with punchwork urn and flowers design, southeastern Pennsylvania, initialed C.W. and dated 1857, 11 1/2 x 11 inches, purchased by Henry C. Mercer from Levi Yoder, Silverdale, Bucks County, in 1917.
Earthenware Sugar Bowl, thrown and modeled redware based on a Swiss traditional form, attributed to John Neis or Nace (1785-1867), Upper Salford, Montgomery County, c. 1840, 5 1/4 x 3 3/4 inches, gift of Henry C. Mercer, 1917.
Pitchfork and Shovel, southeastern Pennsylvania, 19th century, a gift of Tobias Nash of Wormansville, Bucks County, as was included in Mercer's original "Tools of the Nationmaker" exhibit. It had multiple uses: as a feed and grain shovel on the farm, as a flour shovel at the grist mill, and as a shovel for apple pumice at the cider mill and press. The pitchfork was used to load hay into wagons and barn lofts.

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