Ten artists from across the region showed up at Reading Terminal Market on Thursday for the inaugural Scrapple Sculpting Contest, writes Stephanie Farr for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

The sculptors spent 90 minutes chiseling away at five-pound blocks of the Pennsylvania Dutch dish that is made of pig scraps in a congealed loaf form.

As the artists worked, Filbert, Reading Terminal’s inflatable pig mascot, entertained the crowd as a jazz guitarist softly played popular hits.

Some of the passersby were confused by the event and many stopped to ask what was going on.

“This is awesome!” said Manon Riley of South Philly. “I had no idea what was going on at first. Is it cheese? Is it wood? Then I realized, oh, it’s breakfast food!”

The final products included piglets, a rendition of old LOVE Park, and letters and symbol “I ♥ U.”

The winner of the first-ever competition was announced by Sherman Fleming, a local artist and curator. He awarded the top prize to Jake Heller for the chicken vase with a removable head with a small chicken egg inside.

All the sculptures will be on display on Saturday during Reading Terminal Market’s Scrapple & Apple Festival.

Read more about the Scrapple Sculpting Contest in The Philadelphia Inquirer.