ECLECTIC MIX OF OLD AND NEW FASCINATING TO GUESTS

When people accept their first invitation to Lois Roberts' home, they probably don't realize what a visual treat awaits them.

It starts with a step into the foyer, an area dominated by religious art. A bronze bust of Pope John Paul II on a marble pedestal is the first piece. Several small pictures of Catholic churches surround it.

Religion is a theme that weaves its way through many of the rooms, although sometimes that theme is represented by a lone cross, cherub or rose.

"The rose is the flower of the Blessed Mother," Roberts said. "The cherubs just give me a special, light-hearted feeling. I think they are absolutely beautiful, and they give me a feeling of God in my life."

She said she felt blessed in finding her house, a process that took more than a year. She and her late husband, Jake Roberts, moved in around 1983.

The Victorian home was built in 1898 and still has its original cistern and first-floor water-closet fixtures.

"I loved the floor plan," Roberts said. "It was the layout I'd looked for for so long, and we had the pleasure of renovating from scratch."

Roberts prefers to keep the address to herself. Concerned about becoming a victim of burglary, she has three alarm systems, floodlights and various other safeguards.

The concern is valid. A parlor located off the foyer features a replica of an angel statue from the Louvre. A 4-by-6-foot framed lithograph of the same statue dominates the room, along with capodimonte porcelain and its 24-carat gold accents.

Crystal lamps from Germany light the room, allowing guests to look closer at antique Italian portraits. Two of them have stories.

"Italian artists would paint the bodies, then go door-to-door asking if the lady of the house would have her head painted on," Roberts said. "The artist would hide the line with a bow or big beads."

There are other stories, but some of them died along with Roberts' husband in 1994. While she enjoys fine art, it was her husband who kept up with dates, styles and artists' names.

The couple traveled around the world for their collection, visiting China, Germany, France, Italy and elsewhere. Other pieces came from friends who traveled to various countries.

Roberts' formal dining room also is located off the foyer. The table always is set with silver, china and Russian-cut crystal. Two large silver candlesticks, gifts from a friend, dominate the setting. A china cabinet off to the side is packed full of Lenox crystal and Staffordshire china.

A crank-powered, working Victrola sits off in a corner, looking a little out-of-place in the room full of finery.

Things relax in the kitchen, where Roberts keeps a collection of new and antique roosters.

A stained-glass window sends multicolored beams of light onto the staircase to the second floor. Around it are portraits of Japanese royals on painted glass. A commissioned painting of Japanese cranes overlooks the second flight of stairs. Melted silver and other precious metals were worked into the piece.

Roberts' living room is the last room on the short tour she gives new visitors. In the center of the room is an Oriental teakwood table inlaid with mother-of-pearl. A set of solid brass scales sits on its top.

But American history dominates the walls. A collection of arrowheads is on one wall. Pins from various political campaigns, including one that reads, "President Nixon. Now more than ever," are on another wall. A solid jade marble sits on a shelf next to silver-painted marbles from Germany.

Just outside the living-room door are tapestries dating from the early 1800s. One has a likeness of President George Washington on it.

Although her collecting has slowed a bit, Roberts plans to continue as long as there is room to put things. It would seem every square inch of wall and floor is covered, but she will find places for new items.

"I enjoy art and antiques," Roberts said, "so I enjoy my home."