Everhart Museum - The Collections

The Collections

The Everhart Museum’s collections include approximately 20,000 objects, with roughly half focused on the humanities and including fine arts (paintings, works on paper and sculpture), ethnographic collections (Native American, Oceania, South American and Asian), ancient civilizations, African art, American folk art, local/regional history and decorative arts (Dorflinger glass is a large component of this collection). The remaining half of the collection is focused on natural science specimens, including fossils, birds, mammals, reptiles, fish, minerals, insects, shells and herbaria. The natural science collection often features in exhibit development, as the natural world is frequently the subject of artistic inspiration, and the collections are used as a resource by artists and children alike.

The natural science collection includes regional specimens, as well as examples from environments around the world. The ornithological collection includes 2,300 specimens, many of which are on display in the Museum’s Bird Gallery. The mammal collection consists of approximately 400 specimens that include primates, regional fauna and tropical animals. The fish, reptile and amphibian collections number approximately 285 items. The Museum’s shell collection has 3,500 specimens and there are 800 pieces in the mineral collection. The fossil collection has 300 pieces, some of which are on display in the Dinosaur Gallery. The entomological collection includes approximately 300 specimens of Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths) and Coleoptera (beetles). In 1913, Alfred Twining, the Associate Editor of the Scranton Times and foremost botanist in the region, donated his Herbarium to the Museum that comprises 2100 specimens.

The fine art collection consists of nineteenth-century paintings by nationally and locally recognized artists, works on paper, contemporary prints and paintings, a small collection of European paintings and classical and modern sculpture. The ancient civilizations collection (500 pieces) consists of Egyptian funerary objects, Roman glass and bronze objects, sculpture, coins, seals and jewelry. The ethnographic collections (4000 pieces) include ceramics, textiles, religious objects, and arms. The African art (500 pieces) collection comprises masks, figures, arms, tools and textiles.

The Americana and folk art collection contains paintings, works on paper, sculpture, textile arts and furniture. It was in 1934 that Mr. and Mrs. John Law Robertson lent significant pieces of American Folk Art for an exhibition at the Everhart Museum. Most of these collections were later acquired in the years 1946 to 1948 and these form the base of the extensive American Folk Art collection. Mrs. Robertson (whose actual full name has been difficult to determine, since she is always referenced publicly only as "Mrs. John Law Robertson") was one of the first individuals who exclusively dedicated time and money to develop on one of the seminal collections of folk art in the country. Her enthusiasm for folk art is recorded in letters from the museum archives where she explicitly states her commitment to and passion for art that was frequently ignored by institutions exclusively dedicated to “fine arts.” Mrs. Robertson, an area native, balked at the conventional, conservative trends of the art world in favor of what she deemed of value. Like other early folk art collectors, she sought American art outside the established halls of the Academy, understanding the intrinsic beauty, the evident craftsmanship and the inherent history of these objects.

The decorative arts collection includes ceramics, glass and furniture from Asia, Europe and America. Of special interest is the Dorflinger Glass which was produced in White Mills, Pennsylvania, from 1852 to 1921. The factory, founded by Christian Dorflinger, was renowned for its cut glass and stemware. The prestige of the factory was enhanced by its reputation for fine tableware that was sought after by eight American Presidents, from Abraham Lincoln to Woodrow Wilson, and selected European royalty.