Donations of high end antiques, Oriental rugs, fine art, important paper collectibles, sterling and gold are being sought by Mattapoisett Friends Meeting as part of its fundraising efforts to restore its historic meeting house.
Frank McNamee of the Marion Antique Shop has agreed to handle the sale of vetted items at its annual November auction. A mid-September deadline has been set for this particular sale. Vetting will be done by Mr. McNamee.
A receipt for income tax purposes, for the full value of any item sold, will be given the donor by the church.
Mr. McNamee is also helping the cause by reducing the seller’s commission by half for which the meeting is grateful.
Two donations have already been accepted. One is an 1871 scrapbook with articles pasted over a partial logbook of the New Bedford whaling ship Courier, covering the last part of a voyage begun in 1829. Two articles in the scrapbook deal with President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination.
Another is a type of metate, called a grinding stone or grinding slab, carved by pre-Columbian Mayans from one piece of stone. It is accompanied by two mano stones, hand-held carved stones for grinding corn and other grains.
To date, the Friends Meeting has raised more than $82,000 toward the estimated $245,000 restoration project. Phase 1 of the work is expected to begin next month.
For more information, call Brad Hathaway at 508-758-3579.