Riegelsville Public Library     615 Easton Road     Riegelsville, PA

Mercer Tile Fireplace

The focal point of the Riegelsville Public Library's main reading room is an original Mercer tile fireplace. Situated at the north end of the room, the fireplace was installed in 1925 to mark the fortieth anniversary of the Riegelsville Academy.  It is composed of hand-crafted clay tiles designed by artist/archaeologist Henry Chapman Mercer and made at the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works in Doylestown, PA, topped by a concrete cap. The fireplace surround features ten rustic Arts-and-Crafts style tiles with a Four Seasons motif; each one illustrates a leisure activity or agricultural task associated with the different seasons of the year.  Not only is the fireplace an attractive decorative element, but comfortable seating creates an inviting, cosy corner where adults and children alike can read, chat and play.                         Click on each image for a larger view.

Left: Close-up of the fireplace surround. Below: Shield of the Riegelsville Academy.

Details of Four Seasons tiles (click picture for larger image)

"Priscilla Spinning"

"Umbrella Lady"

"Snowshoeing"

"Winnowing Grain"

"Chasing Butterfiles"

"Dipping Candles"

"Husking Corn"

"Beehive"

"Carrying Faggots (Sticks)"

"Flailing"

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