Potter & Potter Auctions is pleased to announce a 361-lot specialized sale titled Belonging: The Art of American Fraternal Societies to be held Thursday, Oct. 9. This debut auction, the first of its kind, celebrates the art, ritual objects, and ephemera of American fraternal organizations from the 19th century onward. Starting at 10 a.m. CDT, it will be presented at the companys Chicago, Ill., gallery and also livestreamed on www.potterauctions.com. This sale features materials from the collection of Bruce and Julie Webb, owners of the Webb Gallery in Waxahachie, Texas. Bruce Webb co-authored As Above, So Below: Art of the American Fraternal Society, 18501930, a definitive work on the subject that includes a foreword by avid collector and Talking Heads lead singer and guitarist, David Byrne. A reception for the Webb collection will be held at Potter & Potter Auctions gallery on Tuesday, Oct. 7, from 6 to 8 p.m., including a talk at 7 p.m. by fraternal aficionado Lisa Stone. The expected top lot is titled A Road Less Traveled, which was a fraternal initiation prop. Each of the two panels of this early 20th-century, handmade sculptural wood piece would be placed in a line on the ground, and the candidate would be blindfolded and walked to the beginning of the path. The boards have varying shapes on them and walking over the hard objects would be painful. This unusual example came from an Odd Fellows lodge in Indiana. Another lot is a Knights of Pythias exploding desk with a sliding skull and cross bone painting. This ca. 1890s desk is made from wood, metal, and leather. When a candidate sat down to write his impressions of a lodge initiation, a lever would be activated, a bell would ring, and a skull and crossbones painting would abruptly appear, startling the candidate, and continuing the initiation. An Order of the Eastern Star light box, ca. 1940s era, will be sold. This teaching device is in working condition and is made from wood, glass, paint, and wiring with light bulbs. The Order of the Eastern Star isthe largest fraternal organization in the world open to both men and women, with a focus on charitable, educational, and fraternal activities. We are excited about the historic scope of objects, art, and ephemera in our premiere fraternal auction. Strange ritual, playful humor, and dead-on seriousness combine for a perfect storm representing what we do at Potter & Potter Auctions. Something that was so popular in the 19th and 20th centuries fell out of favor and was ignored for years. Its now in our current ether bringing back interest for this compelling obscure genre, reported Aron Packer, director of Fine and Outsider Art. For more information, email aron@potterauctions.com.