Judging time at the Georgia National Fair

Next Sunday, we will be judging the entries in the Antiques Section of the Georgia National Fair. I hope and pray we have lots of entries this year! I know it can sometimes be a hassle to drop off and pick up your items, but there will be lots of helpful volunteers to assist! The Perry Area Historical Society helps with the entries and the display process.

The judges look for quality and uniqueness.  Is the item in good condition and not super common?  We choose a first, second, third and honorable mention.  Some categories may have twenty entries, and some might only have two.  Just because there may be a small number in a category, it doesn’t guarantee an automatic win.  We try to give out as many awards as possible, though, to encourage people to participate again next year.  It is a lot of fun to come to the fair and see your item on a display with a ribbon hanging on it!

Sometimes people don’t realize they have a reproduction, so we have to let them know.  Also, there is often confusion as to which category to place an item in.  If you have a collection you may want to enter that in a different department as a collection.  There is still time to enter your items.  Small or valuable items will be locked in a case with security in the antiques department.  

So much work goes on behind the scenes by volunteers to check in the items, tag them, and place them on tables by categories.  All the tags then have to be turned over so the names of the exhibitors cannot be seen by the judges.  Judges go around to the items with a volunteer, and they are told which items are to be judged in that category, and we stick a colored sticker on the tag denoting which place the item wins.   Then, after all the items have been judged, we bring what we believe are outstanding entries to a table and decide which one should be the champion and reserve champion.  

Then, the volunteers put all the ribbons on the items and turned the names over. They will work all the items into vignettes for display. When the fair ends, the volunteers take all the items down and put them back in order on tables so they can easily be identified for pick-up time. Hats off to all of those kind and hardworking volunteers who make it happen, and Happy Collecting!