BUNDABERG, QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA – Cap

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Bundaberg, Queensland , Australia

ITEM: Cap

NOTES: Bundaberg, the “Fresh Heart of Australia”. I haven’t heard that before. I only know about Bundaberg Rum, made from the dominant local crop, sugar cane. Goodling suggests  otherwise “the heart of Australian food” and the “the heart of Australia’s fresh food”. Hmmmm, there are a lot of food bowl areas in Australia that would disagree. Apparently Tourism Australia is pushing Bundaberg as a culinary destination. Well, who am I to argue.

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 2000s

MADE FROM: 100% polyester

MADE IN: China

MANUFACTURER: Headwear

DIMENSIONS: One size fits all

BAHRAIN – Wall Ornament

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Bahrain

ITEM: Wall Ornament

NOTES: A vivid little wall ornament from the Kingdom of Bahrain, in the Persian Gulf. The detail around the border is distinctly Persian and the camels, the palm trees, Arabian tent, oasis and camel rider in his keffiyeh make no mistake as to what part of the world it is from. Very nice.

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1980s

MADE FROM: ceramic material

MADE IN: unknown

MANUFACTURER: unknown

DIMENSIONS: 13cm diameter

BRISBANE, QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA – Wall Plate

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Brisbane, Queensland , Australia

ITEM: Wall Plate

NOTES: A vivid plate of Brisbane at the time of the Queensland Centenary in 1959. The sites are all intact and not in abundance such was Brisbane in 1959. Accordingly, the plate makers have included Greenmount beach at Coolangatta on the nearby Gold Coast (which was then still relatively underdeveloped). All under the logo (“insert coat of arms or logo here”) of the Greater Brisbane H.T.A (a tennis association now defunct in Queensland) which is quite appropriate as tennis and sunshine mix well.

The plate has some special significance for me as my father and mother came to Australia, from Croatia (well, from Yugoslavia via other countries) in 1959 and 1960 respectively. They met here shortly thereafter and this is what they, no doubt, saw, and it was a lot les developed then what they were used to.

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1959

MADE FROM: ceramic material

MADE IN: Japan

MANUFACTURER: unknown

DIMENSIONS: 25.5cm diameter

     

VALPARAISO, CHILE – Wall Ornament

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Valparaiso, Chile

ITEM: Wall Ornament

NOTES: A vivid little painted print in relief of Valparaiso, Chile looking down to the harbour from the hillside districts. Valparaíso a once major port, and a home for European immigrants, was known as “Little San Francisco” and “The Jewel of the Pacific”. Now it is is known for its tourism, educational institutions, and supportive environment for artists (which this simple but effective ornament suggests). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valpara%C3%ADso

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 2000s

MADE FROM: wood, paper

MADE IN: Chile (no doubt)

MANUFACTURER: unknown

DIMENSIONS: 19cm x 7cm

 

GREAT BARRIER REEF, QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA – Bottle Opener

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Great Barrier Reef, Queensland,  Australia

ITEM: Bottle Opener

NOTES: The bottle opener, sold in the millions and perhaps the most useful travel souvenir (at least until screw top bottles and pull tab cans came along).. Here we have vibrant colours showing off the Great Barrier Reef.

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s

MADE FROM: steel, plastic.

MADE IN: Japan

MANUFACTURER: unknown

DIMENSIONS: 12cm long

ALABAMA, USA – T Shirt

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Alabama , USA

ITEM: T Shirt

NOTES: Alabama, the “Heart of Dixie”. Are you allowed to say “Dixie” anymore? Surely someone will be triggered, somewhere. Wear with caution as you will probably be torn down in an attempt to erase the subjective past.

Dixie is an informal name for the states in the U.S. South, especially those that seceded and formed the Confederacy which led to the U.S. Civil war. It is a reference to the Mason Dixon line which marks the north from the South. Eventually it was shortened to “Dixie”. Alabama

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1994

MADE FROM: 100% cotton

MADE IN: Mexico

MANUFACTURER: Jerzees

DIMENSIONS: XL

SYDNEY (specifically Sydney Tower), NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA – Drinks Tray

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Sydney, New South Wales (specifically the Sydney Tower) , Australia

ITEM: Drinks Tray

NOTES: A drinks tray depicting Sydney’s third most identifiable feature (the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge probably beat it, if for no other reason than it seems to subject to frequent name changes. As wikipedia says “The name Sydney Tower has become common in daily usage; however, the tower has been known as the Sydney Tower Eye, AMP Tower, Flower Tower, Glower Tower, Westfield Centrepoint Tower, Big Poke, Centrepoint Tower or just Centrepoint”. The Sydney Tower is Sydney’s tallest structure and the second tallest observation tower in the Southern Hemisphere, and was opened to the public in 1981. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sydney_Tower

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s

MADE FROM: metal

MADE IN: unknown

MANUFACTURER: unknown

DIMENSIONS: 32cm diameter

SAINT MALO, FRANCE – Wall Ornament

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Saint Malo , France

ITEM: Wall Ornament

NOTES: A beautiful wooden wall ornament from Saint Malo the beautiful French walled city in Brittany on the French north coast. The figure central, Bertheleme, is striking but I know nothing about her. Perhaps she is a traditional woman of St Malo and Bertheleme is the artist? She is stunning regardless.

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1962

MADE FROM: wood

MADE IN: unknown

MANUFACTURER: unknown

DIMENSIONS: 21cm diameter

   

GOLD COAST, QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA – Frame

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Gold Coast (specifically Warner Brothers Movie World), Queensland , Australia

ITEM: Frame

NOTES: A picture frame celebrating DC comics superheroes and DC Comics Super-Villains tenuously linked to the Gold Coast via the theme park studio. The characters depicted are old school from the golden age of comic design and have a pop art immediacy about them, without any of the cynicism or irony many contemporary superhero variations have. Putting your picture in the middle says what? Or, am I reading too much into this?

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 2000s

MADE FROM: plastic , cardboard

MADE IN: China

MANUFACTURER: Warner Brothers

DIMENSIONS: 25.5cm x 32cm