The nation’s top dealers in rustic antiques are loading up their vehicles and preparing for the trek to the annual Adirondack Museum Antiques Show and Sale, where their newest finds and treasures will be displayed from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 19 and 20, on the museum’s autumn-painted mountain campus, 9097 State Route 30 in Blue Mountain Lake, N.Y. The event is included with general museum admission.

Their high-quality items – selected with an eye to the Adirondack sensibility – include antique camp, cottage, patio, and Mission furniture; rare books; vintage boats; vintage sporting goods; taxidermy; quilts; vintage leather items, historical fine art, folk art, prints, and posters; oriental rugs; Native American jewelry; and much more.

“We do these shows all over the country,” says Christopher English, of Antediluvian Antiques & Curiosities in Lake Placid, N.Y. “Some are very flashy, and some are very Americana, but the Adirondack Museum show falls into several different categories, so you don’t need to be a serious antique buyer to find something unique for your home.”

“Delightful events like this one don’t happen by accident,” say the event’s organizer Rod Lich, of Rod Lich, Inc., Georgetown, Ind. “We’re very selective about which dealers we invite to participate. We want to create an antiques show that serves a wide range of interests, from beginning collectors to serious connoisseurs.”

Under the Fiery Foliage

During the third weekend of September the Adirondack Mountains are painted with autumn’s bright reds, oranges, yellows, and purples, adding a memorable component to the experience of browsing antique dealers’ booths on a museum campus nestled among mountain peaks and shimmering lakes.

Beyond the antiques, there is much to see and do at the museum, including garden tours, children’s activities, and all museum exhibitions, including the new shows A Sense of Place: Ellen Phelan’s Kenjockety, Weaving A Legacy: Mohawk Basketry Traditions, Gone Camping: Outfitting the Adirondack Campsite, Arto Monaco and the Land of Makebelieve, and Sonic Hotel: Lost and Found Sounds of the Adirondacks.

The museum’s Lake View Café will be open during the event, and shipping services are available from the event through the on-site staff of the Lake Placid UPS Store.

 Sneak Preview

 For those who can’t wait for the show’s general-public hours, there will be an early buying opportunity during a Benefit Preview, from 3 to 5:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 18. Tickets to this special event cost $100, support the museum’s programs and exhibitions, include hors d’oeuvres and cocktails, and provide ticketholders with an exclusive chance to meet the dealers and make purchases before the general-public hours. Tickets may be purchased in advance by phone at (518) 352-7311, ext. 119.

Who’ll Be Here

From more than a dozen states, the following antique specialists are bringing their special wares, including rare and one-of-a-kind architectural elements, Black Forest furnishings, decoys, garden items, historical maps, lighting fixtures, steel engravings, and much more:

1880 Antiques (Canandaigua, N.Y.)

Antediluvian Antiques & Curiosities (Lake Placid, N.Y.)

Appleton Manor Antiques (New Ipswich, N.H.)

Black Bass Antiques (Bolton Landing, N.Y.)

Blue Line Antiques (Port Leyden, N.Y.)

C M Antiques (New York, N.Y.)

Cherry Gallery (Damariscotta, Maine)

Child’s Play Antiques (Marietta, Ga.)

Chimney Corner Antiques (Newburyport, Mass.)

Christiby's (Traverse City, Mich.)

Class Menagerie (Bolton Landing, N.Y.)

Comstock Books & Antiques (Saranac Lake, N.Y.)

Cotton’s Antiques (Wabash, Ind.)

Linda Davidson Antiques (Landrum, S.C.)

Robert Dodelin Antiques (Mt. Laurel, N.J.)

Dave & Bonnie Ferriss (Lake Luzerne, N.Y.)

Michael Friedman Antiques (Weston, Conn.)

Gargoyles LTD. (Kingston, N.Y.)

Anne Hall Antique Prints (Sturbridge, Mass.)

Home Farm Antiques (Bolton Landing, N.Y.)

Hoot and Nana Antiques (Paris, Ky.)

Ralph Kylloe Rustic Design (Lake George, N.Y.)

Mountain Thistle Antiques, LLC (Waynesboro, Va.)

Al Nelson Antiques (Petersburg, Mich.)

The Old Crow (Warwick, N.Y.)

Parrett/Lich, Inc. (Georgetown, Ind.)

Pastime Antiques & Collectibles (Central Square, N.Y.)

John Provo Rustic Antiques (Plymouth, Minn.)

David Allan Ramsay (Cape Porpoise, Maine)

Saratoga Fine Art (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.)

Clifford A. Wallach (Manalapan, N.J.)

White & White Interiors & Antiques (Skaneateles, N.Y.)

David Zabriskie (Lake Placid, N.Y.)

The Adirondack Museum Antiques Show and Sale is made possible, in part, with media support from Adirondack Life and Saratoga Today Newspaper.