BIRDSVILLE, QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA – Toothpick Holder

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Birdsville (specifically Birdsville Hospital), Queensland, Australia

ITEM: Toothpick Holder

NOTES: Birdsville in remote outback Queensland. Famous for the yearly Birdsville races horserace meet where, no doubt, some participants and some celebrating spectators end up at the Birdsville hospital .. hopefully not too many. The population is swells from about 100 to around 7,000 people for the two-day event.

Birdsville lies at the end of Australia’s (once) most hazardous stock route. To this day the Birdsville Track is still an unsealed road but maintained so that you can travel in either a 4WD or SUV with a caravan or camper trailer, or regular car if it doesn’t rain. The road conditions can vary and you may find yourself travelling over a diverse range of surfaces from sand dunes to gibber plains (a tight layer of smooth, weathered rock fragments called “gibbers” (derived from an Aboriginal word for stone)).

The trinket is a toothpick holder made of local wood and nuts to shape a curious grub.

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s

MADE FROM: wood

MADE IN: Australia I suspect

MANUFACTURER: unknown

DIMENSIONS: 8.5cm long

KARLOVAC, CROATIA – Mug

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Karlovac (specifically The Nikola Tesla Experience Center) , Croatia

ITEM: Mug

NOTES: A mug dedicated to the famous Nikola Tesla. He was born in Smiljan, in Croatia, moved to Gospic, Croatia, attended High School at Karlovac Croatia, before moving on to Austria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and the USA. This mug specifically depicts the “Nikola Tesla Experience center” in Karlovac Croatia, right across the road from the high school he attended. The pop art colouring of a famous photo of him advertises the center (which isn’t so much a museum but a interactive look at his inventions).

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 2025

MADE FROM: ceramic material

MADE IN: unknown

MANUFACTURER: unknown

DIMENSIONS: 10cm high, 8cm diameter

 

DUBLIN, IRELAND – Nic Nac Dish

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Dublin, Ireland

ITEM: Nic Nac Dish

NOTES: A colourful melamine plate depicting the General Post Office and O’Connell Street in Dublin. If you look hard enough you can still see the bullet holes* from the Easter Rising of 1916 where the Irish republicans fought to end British rule in Ireland and establish an independent Irish Republic. “The building was destroyed by fire in the course of the rebellion, save for the granite facade, and not rebuilt until 1929, by the Irish Free State government”. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Post_Office,_Dublin

*you can’t really I just added that for dramatic effect. Though, the holes are there: http://www.cbc.ca/radio/thesundayedition/the-triumph-of-failure-ireland-1916-1.3502753/bullet-holes-still-scar-the-general-post-office-in-dublin-1.3503062

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1960s

MADE FROM: plastic (melamine)

MADE IN: Italy

MANUFACTURER: Webel

DIMENSIONS: 13.5cm x 13.5cm

ROTHENBURG, GERMANY – Small Ornamental Plate

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Rothenburg, Bavaria , Germany

ITEM: Small Ornamental Plate

NOTES: Rothenburg ob der Tauber is a town in the Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Feuerleinserker mit Jakobskirche – Rothenburg’s town church of St. Jakob. It was originally a Roman Catholic church but during the 16th century became a Lutheran church

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s

MADE FROM: ceramic material

MADE IN: unknown

MANUFACTURER: Porzellen Manufaktur Lorenz & Sohn

DIMENSIONS: 10cm diameter

A photo of Rothenburg’s town church of St. Jakob in the background from days past …..

ISRAEL – Wall Ornament

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Israel

ITEM: Wall Ornament

NOTES: The Holy Land, the traditional home to the Israelites, and now part of northern Israel. The term “Holy Land” is used to describe areas that hold great significance in the Abrahamic religions, primarily because of their association with people and events featured in the Bible. The “Loves and Fishes” specifically refers to Christianity and the miracle of Jesus feeding the multitude.

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s

MADE FROM: tin

MADE IN: unknown

MANUFACTURER: unknown

DIMENSIONS: 16cm diameter

HOLLAND – Ornament

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Holland

ITEM: Ornament

NOTES: Wooden clogs from Holland, where else? This one celebrates Lucas Bols, maker of alcoholic beverages and the oldest distillery in the world. In 1575 the Bols family opened their distillery in Amsterdam. Now that is something to celebrate!

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s

MADE FROM: wood

MADE IN: unknown

MANUFACTURER: unknown

DIMENSIONS: 14cm long x 7cm high x 6cm wide

   

KAZAKHSTAN – Wall Ornament

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Kazakhstan

ITEM: Wall Ornament

NOTES: Okay so the image may have specific significance but I’m not sure what it is. It does seem to be a Eagle Hunter (associated with Kazakhstan) standing on a flying leopard (probably a snow leopard, the national symbol of Kazakhstan … though they don’t fly).

A former Soviet territory (liberated from the Soviets in 1991) Kazakhstan is the world’s ninth-largest country by land area and the largest landlocked country. Kazakh is widely spoken as is Russian. The population are ethnically Kazakh and are a Turkic ethnic group native to Central Asia and Eastern Europe. The population is mainly Muslim. Who says you can’t learn anything on the internet?

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 2000s

MADE FROM: bakelite

MADE IN: unknown

MANUFACTURER: unknown

DIMENSIONS: 12cm diameter

MEXICO – Ornament

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Mexico

ITEM: Ornament

NOTES: A colourful mini sombrero celebrating colourful Mexico. There are many variations of these out there in all colours and designs, this one in a vivid blue. And what better souvenir? The sombrero is wholly identified with and identifiable as Mexico.

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1980s

MADE FROM: material

MADE IN: unknown

MANUFACTURER: unknown

FIJI – Ornament

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Fiji

ITEM: Ornament

NOTES: A wooden ornament from Fiji apparently, though these is nothing particularly Fijian about it apart from the words on the bonnet. There is a lot of surfing in Fiji so that is, clearly, the market. The wood has been “Fumigated & Treated” so you can bring it back through customs.

In Fiji, bula (pronounced boo-lah) literally translates to “life” or “good health” and is famously used as a warm, all-purpose greeting meaning “hello” or “welcome”, while also serving as a toast similar to “cheers”.

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 2000s

MADE FROM: wood

MADE IN: Fiji

MANUFACTURER: unknown

DIMENSIONS: 13.5cm x 13.5xm long x 7cm wide x 7.5cm high

JORDAN – Paperweight

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PLACE REPRESENTED: Jordan

ITEM: Paperweight

NOTES: Sand art is found wherever there is a lot of sand. Jordan has a lot of sand. Jordan is also famous for the street sand art bottles like this one. It is simple and quite the talking piece (Jordan is written on the inside of the bottle and the rest is layers of sand poked into shapes).

YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1980s

MADE FROM: sand , glass

MADE IN: Jordan

MANUFACTURER: unknown

DIMENSIONS: 13cm high X 5.5cm across