Maine and the Oriental Trade
Betty Schopmeyer, education director at the Penobscot Marine Museum (PMM) of Searsport will present a slide talk and artifact display entitled “Maine and the Oriental Trade” at the Belfast Free Library on Tuesday, June 8th at 6:30 PM.
The sea captains of 19th century Searsport were like other travelers, in that they collected souvenirs. Come see what local ships' masters brought back from the Orient as gifts to family and friends or as reminders of their voyages. Images will include items from the museum’s Jeremiah Merithew House including: A pair of bronze "Fu" dogs that likely guarded the doors of a Chinese temple or palace, elaborately embroidered Chinese kimonos and costumes, children's toys and games, whimsical wood miniatures of Chinese life, fans, vases, and Japanese and Chinese paintings of people and ships.
Schopmeyer will be joined by PMM program and outreach coordinator Cathy Melio, who will share details of an upcoming four part workshop series “Inspired by the Oriental Trade” scheduled for July at PMM, in which participants will create objects based on artifacts from PMM’s collection of items from China and Japan.
The mission of the Penobscot Marine Museum is to preserve, interpret and celebrate the maritime culture of the Penobscot Bay Region and beyond through collections, education, and community engagement. For more information about the PMM go to www.penobscotmarinemuseum.org.
This program is free and open to the public. For more information call the library at 338-3884 ext.10.