NATCHEZ &8212; In Mississippi, dinosaurs keep company with giraffes, scrap metal roosters guard front yards and hands on church steeples point the way to heaven.

Outdoor sculptures like these are the center of the newly opened art exhibit, &8220;From Monuments to Mufflers,&8221; at Historic Jefferson College. The display is made up of photos of outdoor sculptures from all over the state.

&8220;It covers so many different things, from cemetery sculptures to college sculptures to yard art,&8221; said Cheryl Munyer, branch director of the college.

The traveling exhibit, which opened Aug. 7 and runs through Sept. 12, comes from the Museum of Mississippi History in Jackson, formerly the Old Capitol Museum.

This is the first art exhibit the college has hosted in several years, Munyer said.

She said she thought the presentation was appropriate because the college itself has a monument dedicated to the first Mississippi statehood.

&8220;I feel it is very significant in the area,&8221; she said. &8220;And (the art exhibit) is a great way to provide another cultural experience for the community.&8221;

Along with mainstream sculptures of civil war generals, the exhibit highlights unusual sculptures, like two elves reading books at a Gulfport high school.

After viewing the exhibit, Munyer recommended people visit outdoor sculptures around Natchez. She pointed out Memorial Park, the city cemetery and designs on historic buildings.

&8220;Rosalie has sculpture in their water garden, and you can see yard art as you go through the garden district,&8221; she said.

After this exhibit leaves, more are on the way. An art exhibit from the Mississippi Museum of Art, &8220;Drawn to Whimsy: The world of Edgar Parker&8221; will open Nov. 28 at the college and run through Jan. 7.

After that, an exhibit of food culture in Mississippi will be on display, as will some of Eudora Welty&8217;s photographs later in the year.

Munyer said the traveling exhibits are a draw for the college.

&8220;If we have new and fresh exhibits, it gives people another reason to come out and see us,&8221; she said.