Pontiac’s Museum of Gilding Arts expanding

PONTIAC, Ill. (AP) - An Illinois museum dedicated to gold leaf and the other gilding arts is getting more space in downtown Pontiac.

The Museum of Gilding Arts is renovating and expanding its storefront space and hopes to open in May with a formal dedication on June 6.

The (Bloomington) Pantagraph reports (https://bit.ly/1Am33o5 ) the centerpiece will be a recreation of the historic Swift Gold Beating Factory of Hartford, Connecticut.

That was the last factory in America where workers using 15-pound mallets beat molten gold and silver into transparently thin leaf before machines took over.

The museum will also feature contemporary gilded artwork and informational displays on topics like how gold is forged.

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Information from: The Pantagraph, https://www.pantagraph.com