Red fancy painted child's size rocking chair. Foliate painted design with bright green leaves, peaches, and white flowers. Thick black lines and thin gold lines on edges and in depressions of turnings.
Large round redware revival dish or charger, shaped on a mold with coggled edge. Top is painted with a dirty yellow slip with sgraffito decoration and clear glaze. Around edges are large scallop-like swags bordering a central scene of a bird perched on a vining branch with tulip ends. Leaves and swags are daubed with manganese.
Unglazed bottom is signed with a monogram at top, over "Robesonia, Pa", over a keystone shape flanked by "1972", over "L & B Breininger". Lester Breininger and his wife Barbara ran a thriving pottery at their Robesonia home in Berks Co., producing reproductions of 18th c. redware.
Redware revival sgraffito-decorated charger. Deep molded dish has gently curving bowl rising to a broad, flat rim of 1.5". Bowl covered in yellow with sgraffito design of a large eagle with spread wings and heart-shaped body. Below eagle is "1970". Rim unpainted except for inner border having painted black dots. Entire top daubed with manganese and a clear glaze overall except for underside. Incised initials "JCS" on bottom near rim.
J.C. Seagraves began experimenting with pottery in 1948 and set up a shop on Rte. 222 at Breiningsville in 1951. His preference was for making bowls and plates. He produced colorful glazes through the use of copper oxide. He combined the clean-cut modern 1950s style of pottery with the more traditional type to create his own unique style. (Richard L.T. Orth)
Modern "revivalist" fraktur created by Professor H. J. Kauffman's caretaker/nurse, Arlene Harnish. Mounted in handmade wood frame with corner blocks.
Marriage and birth certificate done on tinted laid paper with various colors. Within a border are three panels, the larger central panel has the text: "Henry Ka/uffman/Son of David and Anna/Kauffman was born on/November 14, 1908 in Yo/ork County, Pa. Married/ Elizabeth Zoe Tomer/July 20, 1938." Signed at the bottom "A Harnish" The two side panels are nearly symmetrical, featuring flowering plants growing out of a colorful pitcher resting on a stepped pedestal. A large colorful bird is perched in each of the plants.
Frame was made by HJK in earlier years.
1704 Millersville Pike, Lancaster
Provenance
Made by Arlene Harnish (b. 13 March 1946), caretaker of Henry J. Kauffman. She stated on 30 May 2000, that she learned to make fraktur by taking a class at Landis Valley Museum taught by Jere Kickerman. This piece was only the second fraktur she made, the first being the project for the class, done for her granddaughter.
Harnish made this fraktur for HJK during working hours at his residence when another was pressing. She copied motifs from a book. When completed, HJK told her to look for a frame in the basement. The one she found turned out to be one made by Kauffman himself. Harnish expressed shock and embarrassment upon learning that Kauffman had donated her fraktur to a museum. Arlene is Mrs. R. Edwin Harnish, 1586 Georgetown Rd. Christiana, PA phone: 5292712.
Modern fraktur and frame in excellent condition. The handmade from has small crack in top left corner block where nailed. Wood stain shows brush marks. Brown paper backing.
Object ID
G.96.37.9
Notes
This fraktur is featured in Irwin Richman's book "Pa. German Arts," 2001, page 14.
Place of Origin
Lancaster
Usage
Kauffman's home
Credit
Gift of Henry J. Kauffman, Heritage Center Collection
Eagle pattern all-cotton quilt is made from a commercial kit; all designs appliqued on off-white ground. Kit was produced to celebrate the Bicentennial in 1976.
Central eagle is appliqued within pointed oval fringed with flowering branches; all within a thin 3/4" appliqued frame/inner border. Outside border filled with undulating floral vine all four sides.
Fabrics used for applique are solid red, a green print and a yellow print. Outer border is 17" wide.
Batting is mid-weight cotton. Backing is solid off-white cotton. Instead of a binding, there is a band of green print at edge.
Hand quilting follows appliques, straight lines radiate from eagle in center. Scallop borders green inner border. Diamond grid covers remaining body of quilt except for parallel lines outside border vine.
Note: Two valances (G09.3.13A-B) were made to accompany this quilt.
Provenance
Made by donor's mother Edna Spangler Keefer (3/30/1912 - 6/6/1997), while living in Hermitage (near Sharon), Mercer Co., PA.
Several stains on front, esp. 2 1/2" oval brown stain at center of left side and another lighter liquid stain about 4 1/2" dia. just below it, and finally an 11" crescent brown stain across inner green print border/frame. Additional stains on back. Blue dotted line of pattern is visible at many points.
Object ID
G.09.03.12
Place of Origin
Hermitage, Mercer County, Pennsylvania
Role
Quiltmaker
Credit
Gift of Betsy Keefer in memory of the Spangler family quilters, Heritage Center Collection
Thimble of Mexican sterling silver (925) in classic shape but unusual construction. Sides have a vertical seam and top is capped with a domed and dimpled top. This horizontal joint is then wrapped with a band of silver.
Heavy applied decoration: upper 3/5 of sides have three flowering plants growing out of S-scrolls below and C-scrolls arranged in the lower 2/5. The scrolled decoration is applied like quilled paper. This raised decoration stands out against a black painted body.
Struck along inside of rim is "MEXICO" and "IGU---" over "92-". Other marks unclear. (See Notes) A "2" is struck on outside of body creating a circular depression.
Provenance
Collected by Lillian Hollings Kiker, born to Scottish Americans who lived in New Jersey. Born (1912) and lived in New Jersey, last of Egg Harbor, she was active with quilting, sewing, knitting & crocheting. Collection inherited by donor when her mother passed away.
Dark overall with what appears to be black paint. All salient surfaces are worn and there are paint losses. Distortion of body and multiple places where maker has struck lettering or designs.
Object ID
G.05.15.37
Notes
See another example of this ring found on internet in this file. Iguala is a town near the renowned silvermaking town of Taxco (near the west coast of Mexico) where William Spratling, in the 1930s, famously reinstituted the silver industry and craftsmanship that had died centuries before.
Place of Origin
Iguala de la Independencia, Guerrero, Mexico
Credit
Gift of Susan Garofola in memory of Lillian Kiker (mother), Heritage Center Collection
Thimble of "Alpaca Silver" (see Notes). Similar to G.05.15.38, the sides have a vertical seam and are capped by a domed top with a waffle pattern produced by a machine. Upper half of sides have vertical rows of hand-punched dimples. Plain bottom half. Bottom edge has a raised, applied band with 10 hand-set pieces of vari-colored abalone. Solder points quite visible.
Struck inside rim is "-LPACA". Most likely made in Mexico
Provenance
Collected by Lillian Hollings Kiker, born to Scottish Americans who lived in New Jersey. Born (1912) and lived in New Jersey, last of Egg Harbor, she was active with quilting, sewing, knitting & crocheting. Collection inherited by donor when her mother passed away.
Dents/distortion at sides as well as significant tarnish.
Object ID
G.05.15.39
Notes
Nickel silver, German silver, Argentan, new silver, nickel brass, albata, alpacca, or electrum is a copper alloy with nickel and often zinc. The usual formulation is 60% copper, 20% nickel and 20% zinc. Nickel silver is named for its silvery appearance, but it contains no elemental silver unless plated. The name "German silver" refers to its development by 19th-century German metalworkers in imitation of the Chinese alloy known as paktong (cupronickel). All modern, commercially important nickel silvers (such as those standardized under ASTM B122) contain significant amounts of zinc, and are sometimes considered a subset of brass.
Place of Origin
Mexico
Credit
Gift of Susan Garofola in memory of Lillian Kiker (mother), Heritage Center Collection
