PHILADELPHIA-- The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology will hold "Smiles, Laughter and Friends," its ninth annual Peace Around the World Dec. 5 from 1 to 4:30 p.m.  It's a free, multicultural, family-oriented afternoon with choir music plus international music and dancing, international cartoons, holiday card and craft making, magic, exotic face-painting, a treasure hunt, free treats for children and more.  

Attendees can get special reduced-rate parking in Penn Garage 7, Convention Avenue at South Street.

Singers from the Episcopal Academy Middle School Singers, the Haverford School Notables, the French International School Choir and the Pennsylvania Girlchoir will perform  around the Main Landing staircase beginning at 1:30 p.m.  In the Upper Egyptian gallery, Harold Smith, Philadelphia's "Didjdude," will offer guests an opportunity to discover, hear and feel the distinctive vibrating sounds of the didjeridoo, an Aboriginal instrument, , at 1 p.m.  Zilvinas, a group of Lithuanian dancers, performs at 2 p.m., while a group from Rak-Dan Israeli Dancing performs and offers some instruction at 3 p.m.

Visitors will have a chance to "Find the Golden Bull," an all-new treasure hunt game that starts in the Lower Egyptian gallery and takes treasure seekers through multiple galleries to the 4,500-year-old Treasures from the Royal Tombs of Ur, on display through May 2005.  Throughout the day, participants can create holiday gifts of their own at an ongoing beading workshop.

The Penn Museum's five mascots, each with mask and costume inspired by famous artifacts in the collection and created by artist Tom Sonnenberg, will take Polaroid pictures of children, and Jack the Balloon Man will take requests for his balloon creations from 1 to 4 p.m.

Artists from Peanutbutter's face painting troupe will be on hand to paint faces, and transform faces, and the Middle Eastern art of henna body painting will be demonstrated on visitors' hands and ankles.

Magician John Moran will stroll through the Museum from 1 to 4 p.m.  Throughout the afternoon, cartoons from around the world will run in the Rainey Auditorium.

Throughout the day, students from International House will help Museum visitors create bookmarks by writing "Peace" in the languages and scripts of their homelands.  A holiday card-making table will be open for everyone to create personal cards.

Peace Around the World, one of the Museum's multi-cultural family celebrations, is organized and supported by the Museum's all-volunteer Women's Committee.  Other sponsors include the Canada Dry Delaware Valley Bottling Company and the Museum Catering Company.