Please join esoteric publisher William Kiesel for coffee and a presentation on wunderkammen and alchemy in the appropriately wonderful and odd surroundings of Ancient Grounds Cafe and art gallery.

The Curiosity Cabinet was the forerunner of the contemporary museum. But before public museums existed worldly collections took the form of the Kunstkammern, or art cabinet that was often the privilege of royalty alone. During the Renaissance such collections were filled with natuaralia, artificialia, scientific devices and other art treasures.

William Kiesel will give a brief visual presentation displaying some early examples of Curiosity Cabinets and their collectors as well as discuss the similarities they share with alchemical laboratories.  The slide presentation will take place in one of Seattle's finest Curiosity Cabinets; Ancient Grounds, where many wonderful objects from around the world, including tribal art, mineral specimens, Japanese and Native American masks, totem poles, intricate architectural carvings, kimonos, articulated skeletons, headdresses and other displays may be viewed while sipping an excellent espresso or other beverage before during and after the talk.

William J. Kiesel is the publisher and creative director of Ouroboros Press. The press works with contemporary scholars as well as translators to provide rare texts to the English speaking world.   As a member of the European Society for the Study of Western Esotericism, William busies himself with the study of esoteric symbol systems in religion, mythology and folklore in historical and contemporary contexts. He has lectured in the United States and Europe.

DETAILS AND DIRECTIONS

Please meet at Ancient Grounds Coffee Shop: 1220 1st Avenue at or before 1pm.

There is seating room for about 80 people, any mor ethan that and it may be floor or standing room.

The presentation is free, the excellent coffee is not.

ABOUT OBSCURA DAY

Obscura Day is an international celebration of unusual places taking place around the world on March 20, 2010. It is sponsored by Atlas Obscura, a guide to the world's wonders, curiosities, and esoterica. To find out more about the Atlas and Obscura Day, or to find out how you can host an event in your city, visit ObscuraDay.com, or follow us on Twitter or Facebook.

While you are out exploring, we encourage you to take pictures and tag them on Flickr as Obscura Day and tweet using #obscuraday so we can all watch Obscura Day unfold all over the world.

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