today we visited the mercer museum and henry mercer's estate, fonthill, for the first time. i didn't know anything about henry mercer prior to this day, but his story and legacy is incredibly inspiring.
mercer had a passion for archeology and tile-making. living in a period of industrialism, he was one of the first to recognize the importance of preserving american artifacts from the pre-industrial era and devoted much of his life searching for and collecting almost 40,000 historical objects related to tools, crafts, and trades that now make up the mercer museum. walking through each level was like unlocking a vault of hidden treasures, and i couldn't help but think about how ingenious and visionary this man was.
after the museum, we went on to take a tour of his residence, fonthill castle. it is made up of 44 rooms, 10 bathrooms, 5 bedrooms, 32 staircases, 18 fireplaces, and over 200 windows. the castle was built entirely out of hand-mixed concrete with gothic vaulted ceilings and an amazing collection of both mercer and foreign tiles. mercer liked to depict stories through his tiles. on many tiles throughout the house were the words, "PLVS VLTRA" (plus ultra) in latin, which means "more beyond." we were told by the tour guide that this was his motto, and i believe it because he was truly a renaissance man with an unquenchable thirst for knowledge.
one person in my life who seems to possess this same insatiable thirst for learning is my own father. he instilled in us early on (through our education and travels) that the world is an abundant place, ripe for discovery. as a result, i find myself interested in anything and everything and my list of hobbies go on and on... i have a general appetite for things from the arts to the sciences and am constantly looking for different ways to drink it all in.
plus ultra. more beyond. high-five, mercer.
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