Lewes Historical Society's 2015 Mid-Atlantic Sea Glass & Coastal Arts Festival Set for June 27 & 28

The Lewes Historical Society announces the 2015 Mid-Atlantic Sea Glass & Coastal Arts Festival Saturday, June 27 and Sunday, June 28, at the Lewes Historic Campus at 110 Shipcarpenter Street in Lewes, Delaware. Hours are 9:00am to 4:00pm on Saturday and 9:00am to 3:00pm on Sunday.  New this year, admission to the festival is $5 per person, per day. Children under 12 are free.
 
Last year, the Mid-Atlantic Sea Glass & Coastal Arts Festival, attracted over 5,500 visitors. 2015 is the sixth year for this event, and it’s expected to be better than ever!  It will feature more than seventy sea glass artists, joined by other coastal artists- including decoy carvers and waterfowl artists.  Listen to festive live music on Saturday from 10:00am-2:00pm by steel drum player Jimmy G and Sunday 10:00am-2:00pm by musician Paul Zavinsky.  Enjoy delicious food and cool treats all weekend. 
 
Also, on Saturday, June 27, FREE featured presentations will be held at St. Peters Church Hall (at 211 Mulberry Street):
 
From 11:00am-12:00pm, Stephen J. Godfrey Ph.D. will present "Fossils from Calvert Cliffs.” Calvert Cliffs are world-famous amongst geologists and paleontologists/avocational fossil collectors because of the abundance and diversity of fossils that erode from these cliffs. There are over 600 different kinds of fossilized organisms that have been found in these 8-18 million-year-old sediments. Enjoy a slide presentation showing a cross-section of this diversity and then a telling of the amazing stories that some of these fossils preserve; what we can learn about life during the Miocene epoch in southern Maryland. In 1998, Dr. Godfrey became the Curator of Paleontology at the Calvert Marine Museum in Solomons, Maryland where his mandate is to collect, preserve, and interpret fossils from the famous Calvert Cliffs along the Chesapeake Bay.  Most of the fossils that he quarries from the cliffs are of extinct whales and dolphins.
 
From 2:30pm-3:30pm, Richard LaMotte will introduce visitors to his new book "The Lure of Sea Glass." The book debuts this June as a sequel to his best-selling "Pure Sea Glass," published in 2004. A decade later, LaMotte shares many of the unique stories and samples of collections from across the country including the Delaware shore. He will provide additional background on identification of special shards to assist collectors in their quest to learn more about their own finds. Visitors will be treated to some behind the scenes details on the new book, as well as the stunning sea glass images by photographer Celia Pearson. Richard LaMotte is a founding member of the North American Sea Glass Association and author of the master reference on sea glass for collectors, "Pure Sea Glass." His book, identification deck, and lectures have helped over a hundred thousand collectors unlock mysteries hidden within their seaside treasures.
 
New this year- Bring the kids for a fun children’s activity “From Pirates to Politics,” to take place on Saturday, June 27 from 1:00pm-3:00pm at Midway School House #178 (at the Lewes Historic Campus). This activity will be led by Lewes Historical Society volunteers and members of The Pirates of the Delaware Bay, an official chapter of the Red Hat Society. 
 
"From Pirates to Politics," will allow children to learn about life in the past through engaging activities based on the factual occurrences of piracy that occurred along the Delaware cost in the 17th century. Children will be asked to write an answer to the question, “Today in Delaware I learned or I saw” on a piece of parchment to be put it inside of a 7” bottle.  Children will then decorate a mailing box with a pirate theme.  Parents who are willing to provide an address will enable their children’s messages to be submitted to a local government official and marked as read. Afterwards, The Lewes Historical Society will mail these messages back to the specified addresses. Participants are encouraged to dress as pirates!  Any supporting member of the Red Hat Society who is interested in joining the Pirates Chapter should contact BJ Young at [email protected]. To become a member of the Red Hat Society visit www.redhatsociety.com.
 
Also, on Sunday from 9:00am-3:00pm, specialist Keith Fleming will be available to identify glass shards and bottle treasures on-site at the festival in the Midway School House #178.
 
Like collecting shells, fossils, or stones, combing shorelines for sea glass is a hobby many beachcombers enjoy. Sea Glass hobbyists often fill decorative jars with their collections and take great pleasure in sourcing out a shard's origin. Artisans craft beautiful pieces of jewelry, stained glass and other decorative treasures from sea glass.
 
Sea glass can be found all over the world, but the beaches of the northeast United States, California, northwest England, Mexico, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Nova Scotia, Italy and southern Spain are famous for their bounty of sea glass, bottles, bottle lips and stoppers, art glass, marbles, and pottery shards. The best times to look are during spring tides and during the first low tide after a storm.
 
Shards may also evidence a frosted side and a shiny side, most likely because they are pieces broken off from larger glass objects still embedded in mud, silt or clay, which are only slowly being exposed by wave action and erosion.
 
With greater environmental awareness, there has been a decline in naturally occurring sea glass, creating a great market for expensive and rare pieces.
 
The Lewes Historical Society invites the public to celebrate sea glass and coastal art on Saturday, June 27 and Sunday, June 28. For more details about the Mid-Atlantic Sea Glass & Coastal Arts Festival or for more information on The Lewes Historical Society, contact 302-645-7670 or visit www.HistoricLewes.org.
 

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