Chinese Porcelain Vases
This month’s artifacts of the month are together again in the Pettigrew Home. With the closing of the exhibit, Journey with the Senator: R. F. Pettigrew in the Far East, a number of Asian objects that had been featured in the adjoining first-floor gallery were returned this summer to the historic home. This includes the large, orange Chinese porcelain vase which rejoined its mate in the back parlor. The pair are decorated with gilt bird designs and were originally collected by Pettigrew on an 1897 trip.
The two vases originally came to the Pettigrew Home and Museum in 1986 as part of a loan from a granddaughter of Roberta Hollister Smith Pettigrew. At the end of the five-year loan period, the Siouxland Heritage Museums purchased the items, including of a variety of household furnishings, from Mrs. Pettigrew’s descendant.
As fall approaches and school begins again, we invite you to the Pettigrew Home and Museum to see these vases in the historic home. While you are here, you can also learn more about the history of the city in our newest exhibit, Industrial Crash to Retail Cash: The Story of South Sioux Falls.