Every once in a while when on one of these excursions you bump into an unexpected gem. Although not gun or military related, this is one of those. In 2016 I took my grandson to the St Johnsbury(VT) Anthenaeum which is a combination public library and art museum built and donated by the Fairbanks Industrial Scale Co family back in the late 1800's. The cornerstone of the museum is the 10ft x 15ft "Domes of Yosemite" painted by Albert Bierstadt in 1867.  It was commissioned by the original owner for $25,000 which was an amazing amount at that time and bought at auction after the owner's death by Horace Fairbanks for $5,100 which was still a lot of dough back then.

The detail of this painting is amazing.  And in late 2017 the painting was removed from its frame, rolled into a cardboard tube and driven to Miami for a year of restoration, repair and reinforcement and colors and detail not seen for generations were brought out from those efforts.

These are pre-restoration pictures from that first visit.   

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