Tucson Weekly: Listings: Museums (December 18

MUSEUMS
ARIZONA HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 949 E. Second St. 628-5774. Opening December 19 and continuing through September: Un Tesoro de Plata: Spanish Colonial Silverwork; drawn from works produced in the Viceroyalty of Peru, the exhibit explores the history and development of the silversmith's art in Spanish America. Continuing through January 31: Territorial Christmas, a recreation on Christmases past with antique toys, ornaments, decorated trees and a traditional Mexican nativity scene. Continuing through February 14: Pieced Connections: Traditions of Quilting. Continuing: Geronimo and the Chiricahua Apache Experience, a look at the many misconceptions and inaccurate portraits of the Apache people. Continuing through March 1998: Step Right Up: Patent Medicine in the Southwest. This exhibit will focus on the role of patent medicines from 1870 to 1906, before the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act. The exhibit looks at the trend toward self-medication to cure all kinds of ailments, real and imagined, which was facilitated by a booming mail-order business. Continuing through December 30: Angels of Restoration: San Xavier, a photographic exhibit of the mission from the AHS collection as well as a collection of photographs of the restoration work currently underway. Ongoing exhibits include: Welcome to Tucson, a perspective on the Orndorff Hotel circa 1900, in which museum visitors become patrons in the lobby of the Orndroff Hotel from Tucson's Territorial days. Emergence: The South Park Story, 1940-1950, is a photo exhibit tracing the development of the South Park neighborhood, located along Park Avenue south of 22nd Street; and Exploring 1870s Tucson offers a hands-on exhibit for children. Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday.
Listings ARIZONA-SONORA DESERT MUSEUM. 2021 N. Kinney Road. 883-2702. The museum offers a daily variety of informative, entertaining guided tours and walks. Take a Morning Bird Walk at 8:30 a.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays; a Live Animal Interpretation Tour at 8:30, 9:30, 10:30 a.m., and 1:30 p.m. daily; or a Raptor Interpretation at 10:30 a.m. daily. Museum hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Admission is $8.95, $1.75 for kids 12 and under. Group discounts available. Cost is $45, $35 for members. Call 883-3022 for registration and information.
ARIZONA STATE MUSEUM. UA campus, east of University Boulevard at Park Avenue. 621-6302. The Hohokam: Ancient Farmers of the Desert, an exhibition on the irrigation systems, jewelry and ceramics of the early Hohokam people. Paths of Life: American Indians of the Southwest explores the origins, history and life today of American Indians in Arizona and Northwest Mexico. Mexican Masks: Faces of the Fiesta includes 300 colorful Mexican folk-masks. Ancient Images: Plants and Animals of the Prehistoric Southwest, featuring more than 100 examples of plants and animals in prehistoric art. Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Sunday, and admission is free.
FLANDRAU SCIENCE CENTER. UA campus. 621-STAR. Flandrau celebrates the season with Holidays in Light, featuring Christmas, Chanukah and Kwanza music, at 3:30 and 8:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 3:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; and 'Tis The Season, a multicultural planetarium show exploring the many religious, historical and cultural customs of the season, at 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, and 2:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Continuing at the museum are: Under Arizona Skies at 1:30 p.m. Sunday; and The Dinosaur Chronicles at 1:30 p.m. Saturday. Also check out KFMA Laser Electronica, Flandrau's newest laser-light show. Call 621-STAR for information.
FORT LOWELL MUSEUM. 2900 N. Craycroft Road. 885-3832. On permanent display: The View From The Barracks, a photographic exhibit allowing a look at the daily life of enlisted men in the garrisons of the Southwest. And Surgeons, Scalpels and Malaria, a photographic exhibit documenting army medicine during the Apache Wars.
GADSEN-PACIFIC TOY TRAIN OPERATING MUSEUM. Foothills Mall. 7401 N. La Cholla Blvd. See and operate antique and contemporary toy trains at this free museum Friday through Sunday during mall hours. Call Bud Stewart at 749-0228 for information.
PIMA AIR MUSEUM. 6000 E. Valencia Road. 574-9658. On display are 185 military, commercial, and civilian aircraft, including a full-scale mock-up of Kitty Hawk, a presidential plane used by news media and JFK during the 1960s, numerous photos, air and space uniforms and memorabilia. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with last admittance at 4 p.m. Admission is $6 for adults, $5 for seniors and military and $3 for children ages 10 to 17. Free for aviation buffs under 10.
TUCSON CHILDREN'S MUSEUM. 200 S. Sixth Ave. 792-9985. Visit Wee World, created especially for kids ages 5 and under. This unique exhibit contains many fun and colorful places for young children to crawl and climb through. Make a lucky dragon, a pine cone turkey, or craft a luminaria light at Saturday Artworks from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., with a different theme each Saturday. Have fun with volcanoes at Sunday Science from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Enjoy storytelling galore with Teens 'N Tots: Literature, Learning, and Fun at 11 a.m. Saturdays, and 1 and 2 p.m. Sundays. Museum hours are 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $3 for kids, $5 for adults and $4 for seniors. During the After School Special admission is just $2 per person, and the third Sunday of every month is free for all! Call 792-9985 for information.
DOCENT CALL. The Tucson Children's Museum is having a Docent Training on January 12, 13, 19 and 20, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day. If you enjoy children and helping them learn new things, this is the place for you! Call Mary Lynn at 792-9985, ext. 102, for informaiton.
VETERANS MUSEUM. MarketPlace USA. 3750 E. Irvington Road. 740-9429. Displays depict contributions made by area veterans. Hours are noon to 9 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free. Volunteer docents needed.