Inside the restored home of a Founding Father on Jamaica Avenue, a table of small handmade objects is waiting for bids. Each one is a talisman made by a workshop participant for a stranger, and through Saturday, October 24, they are on view at King Manor Museum in a silent auction that will send every dollar raised to a New York nonprofit helping migrants, asylum seekers and refugees.

Charms made for people you have never met

The project is called Talisman for the Perfect Stranger. It began with a workshop at King Manor on October 10, led by Dani Song, where participants learned about talisman traditions from around the world and then made their own, each carrying a wish or an intention for a neighbor they might never meet.

The idea, as the museum describes it, is to treat a talisman as a small gesture of goodwill toward someone else, rather than as a marker of belief or status. The pieces from that workshop make up the exhibition now on view.

How the auction works

Anyone can bid, including the people who made the pieces. All proceeds go to a local nonprofit that supports migrants, asylum seekers and refugees in New York City. The exhibition and auction run Tuesday through Saturday from noon to 4 pm, and close at 3:30 pm on Saturday, October 24.

The project was paid for by the Queens Arts Fund, a re-grant program supported by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and administered by the New York Foundation for the Arts. King Manor provided the space and administrative support.

Also on view at King Manor

Two other exhibitions are up at the museum. The Bicentennial Revisited: The Spirit of '76? runs through December 19. A second, free exhibition about Bangladesh is curated by Arufa Hossain, who is from Jamaica.

About the house

King Manor was the home of Rufus King, one of the nation's Founding Fathers. The house is owned by the City of New York, has been open to the public since 1900, and is run by the King Manor Association of Long Island, a nonprofit. The museum's mission is to teach the history of the antislavery movement as a way of building critical thinking.

Visiting

King Manor Museum is at 150-03 Jamaica Avenue. Museum hours are Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 5 pm; it is closed Sunday and Monday. The museum lists the E and J trains at Jamaica Center-Parsons/Archer and the F at Parsons Boulevard as its nearest subway stops, with the Long Island Rail Road's Jamaica station also close by. A limited number of free parking spaces are available if you call ahead at 718-206-0545.

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