Exhibits
Current Exhibit
Come in to visit our acclaimed museum exhibit, "Decorated and Plain: A
Mennonite and Amish Sampler," at Society headquarters, 2215 Millstream Road.
Experience 300 years of Mennonite and Amish life and culture through our
finest handicrafts and works of art, some never displayed before. You'll
see the material beauty and simplicity wrought by Lancaster County's "plain
people" through antique furniture, one-of-a-kind fraktur, handcrafted
needlework, quilts and clothing. The exhibit is organized around themes of
home, land, church and school. "People of Heart and Home" displays
household artifacts created and used by Mennonite and Amish artisans. The
"People of Faith" section presents a representative meetinghouse layout of
the late 1800's as well as a homemade casket and burial clothes. "People of
the Land" focuses on the Mennonite and Amish agricultural heritage,
including a sampling of original, historic tools.
Our museum is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday, 8:30 AM to 4:30
PM. Admission is $5, with discounts for groups, seniors and children.
Past Exhibits
Mirror of the Martyrs
January 6-August 7, 1993
Recalled the drama of people, obedient to Crown and Church, torturing and killing people who claimed a higher obedience to Jesus Christ; based on
Martyrs Mirror images from nine copper plate engravings of 16th-century Anabaptism. Is it practical to love one’s enemies? Why did good people resist authority? Why do the powerful fear the weak? What beliefs are worth dying for? Why do modern governments continue to torture and kill people?
The Gift of Hope
November 1, 1996-March 8, 1997
Celebrated through objects, stories, and photographs the ministry of Mennonite Central Committee, worldwide relief and service organization that commemorated its 75th anniversary; told how ordinary persons have helped those hurting in a troubled world; designed to raise personal questions as well as broad issues of public policy.
A Sense of Place and Time: Growing Up Mennonite
April 3-October 31, 1999
Series of large and small heritage-related art works on family, religious, and cultural roots by Mennonites artist Abner Hershberger, Goshen, Indiana; explored the boundaries between Mennonite communal life and the secular world; artist attempted to remain honest to a personal aesthetic, pay homage to a nurturing community, and explore a visual arena that was both symbolic and spiritual.
Menno Simons: Image, Art, and Identity
April 1-October 28, 2000
Featured 30 original portraits of Menno Simons from 17th to 19th centuries, illustrative of hunted dissenter, pious saint, learned scholar; issues and principles of his teachings and writings; works of fine art made by and for Dutch Mennonites from 17th to 19th centuries; varied ways Mennonites in North America and the Netherlands have used name and identity of Menno in past century.
History Mystery Tour
Educational, inspirational, intergenerational tour with exhibits.
Informative, designed to show persons behind public scenes
of the Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society.
Entertaining, with participants solving a mystery as tour unfolds.
