Embarking on a treasure hunt to discover those threads, visitors wend their way through galleries, gardens, museums, public buildings, historic sites - and some very surprising places. Women�s works can be found at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, of course � but also at Morris Arboretum; the Schwenkfelder Library and Heritage Center; the National Liberty Museum; Peter Wentz Farmstead; and even in the woods at the Abington Art Center. As part of the WOMEN ADVANCING celebration in 2004-2005, many sites are holding special events and exhibits or offering tours that highlight women�s accomplishments. The Philadelphia Museum of Art is offering guided tours of women�s art (free with museum admission as scheduled). Special exhibits will be on display at the Berman Museum at Ursinus College and the Sedgwick Cultural Center. (See the Valley Forge Area Calendar of Events in the Visitor Guide for details, or visit www.womenadvancing.org)

But women�s works are always in evidence � if you know where to look.

�With women artists, a lot of them are anonymous, so you have to be very clever to find them,� said Danielle Rice, associate director for programs at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (26th St & Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia. 215.763.8100). Quilts, rugs and textile art are often unsigned, offering clues about their makers� lives and artistry but not their identities. To be sure, the museum�s collection includes the Cassatts, O�Keefes and other �name� artists. But even they faced challenges men did not.

Cassatt and fellow Philadelphian Violet Oakley studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, (Broad and Cherry Streets, Philadelphia. 215.972.7600), America�s first art school. Oakley became a successful muralist; her luminous stained glass windows and murals can still be seen in many public buildings, including the First Presbyterian Church in Germantown (35 W. Chelten Ave, Philadelphia. 215.843.8811) and the Pennsylvania State Capitol Building, (Harrisburg. 1.800.TOUR N PA). She and Jessie Willcox Smith, two of the �Red Rose Girls,� studied with N.C. Wyeth�s mentor, Howard Pyle; both are represented in the Brandywine River Museum�s (Rts 1 & 100, Chadds Ford. 610.388.2700) permanent collections.

Over the past hundred years, as the old �rules� of art have been shattered, artists have tackled subject matter and materials that would been unthinkable in the 19th century. At the National Liberty Museum, (321 Chestnut St, Philadelphia. 215.925.2800), Sandy Skoglund�s �Jellybean Kids,� crafted of colorful candies, is a whimsical vehicle for a serious message about peoples� differences and similarities. Ulla Darni�s �Peace Portal� in the same museum is an illuminated glass canopy both as strong and as fragile as the concept it represents.

Durable enough to last many lifetimes are the sculptures that grace the campus at Ursinus College. In Mary Shaffer�s �Formal Aspects,� gray rock and rusted steel embrace to frame the sky. G. Noble Wagner's "The Oval" is a hollowed egg of shining steel. These sculptures are part of the Philip and Muriel Berman Museum of Art�s (Main Street, Collegeville. 610.409.3500) collection. In summer 2004, the Berman Museum will mount an exhibit of women�s works titled Closing the Circle: Representing Women.

More outdoor sculpture is to be found at Morris Arboretum (100 Northwestern Ave, Philadelphia. 215.247.5777), the legacy of Quaker sister and brother Lydia and John Morris. Lorraine Vail�s giant bronze �American Bull� peers froggily from a leafy spot near the Wissahickon Creek. �The artist skillfully captured both his likeness and distinctive personality, as if he had sat for his portrait. Vail rendered him in a gigantic scale, �to give the viewer a �small� feeling in the environment,� states the identification plaque.

Winifred Lutz� �Reclamation Garden� in the woods at Abington Art Center (515 Meetinghouse Rd, Jenkintown. 215.887.4882) explores the intersection between human creations and nature�s beauty, prompting the visitor to question whether the arches, bridges and other forms created by intertwined branches, vines and tree trunks are accidental or created. At its heart is a stone Solstice Tower, built to catch the sun�s rays at the moment of the Winter Solstice.

But equally significant are those anonymous works that are literally the fabric of daily life. These are found in many places besides museums. Ancient rugs and community quilts, young girls� samplers and hand-embroidered linens all testify to their makers� artistry and carry stories of their lives. The Chester County Historical Society (225 N. High St, West Chester. 610.692.4800) displays traditional appliqu�d and pieced quilts made or used locally, mainly in the 19th century. At the Mennonite Heritage Museum (565 Yoder Rd, Harleysville. 215.256.3020), visitors find antique quilts on the wall � and contemporary works for sale. Here and at the nearby Schwenkfelder Library and Heritage Center (105 Seminary St, Pennsburg. 215.679.3103), displays convey the important role quilts and quilting have played in women�s lives for centuries.

Historic sites like Peter Wentz Farmstead, (Shearer Rd & Rt 73, Worcester. 610.326.4014), Pottsgrove Manor (100 W. King St, Pottstown. 610.326.4014), and Hopewell Furnace (2 Mark Bird Ln, Elverson. 610.582.8773) offer a glimpse of women�s lives at a time when making the family�s clothing, bedding and household textiles � plain and fancy � were their responsibility. Sheep-shearing, growing and harvesting flax, carding, spinning and weaving fabric are demonstrated at special events throughout the year, and visitors may even have a chance to try their hand!

Contemporary quilters have taken the form to another level. The annual juried show �Art Quilts at the Sedgwick� at the Sedgwick Cultural Center (7137 Germantown Ave, Philadelphia. 215.248.9229) displays works that range from traditional forms with fantastic designs to others that might better be called mixed media. Painted, dyed, stamped, embroidered, embellished with beads, buttons, bits of metal or other materials, their inventiveness is remarkable.

Throughout the next two years, special tours and events will be offered at the sites mentioned here, and others, as part of the �WOMEN ADVANCING� celebration; or visitors can embark on a treasure hunt of their own!

�WOMEN ADVANCING,� sponsored by the Valley Forge Convention & Visitors Bureau, celebrates women�s accomplishments with event, exhibits and performances at museums, historic sites, concert halls and theaters throughout the Valley Forge countryside and Philadelphia from March 2004 through September 2005. For details on event, hotel package and more, visit www.womenadvancing.org.

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Media Contact: Linda Riley +1 610-834-7990 riley@valleyforge.org