PLACE REPRESENTED: Wales
ITEM: Wall Plate
NOTES: Wales, or Cymru in Welsh, with all the great sites, old and new, from Caernarfon Castle to the, err Millennium Stadium.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 2000s
MADE FROM: ceramic material
MADE IN: Great Britain
MANUFACTURER: Sampson Souvenirs Ltd
DIMENSIONS: 20cm diameter
PLACE REPRESENTED: Minnesota , USA
ITEM: T Shirt
NOTES: Celebrating the Minnesota State Fair and the world famous canned cooked pork, Spam, which hails from Minnesota. Is this a travel souvenir shirt? Not sure but I’m not going to pass up a shirt with the Minnesota State fair and spam on it.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spam_(food)
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 2012
MADE FROM: 100% cotton
MADE IN: Nicaragua
MANUFACTURER: Gildan
DIMENSIONS: L
PLACE REPRESENTED: Mackay, Queensland , Australia
ITEM: Thermometer
NOTES: I’m not sure why there is a nautical theme here (apart from the obvious “buy souvenirs in bulk and write town name here” aspect). Mackay is in central or northern Queensland (depending on who you ask) coast, though not a port town. The CBD of Mackay is on the Pioneer River as it empties into the ocean, It has Harbour Beach, a marina, and Bluewater Lagoon (a city water park) all of which still don’t really relate to the deep sea seafaring themes depicted (though design is quite good – a ships wheel and anchor combined with a sailing ship).
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: steel
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 14cm across x 15cm high
PLACE REPRESENTED: Rijeka , Croatia
ITEM: Wall Ornament
NOTES: The Morcic (Moretto) are a traditional symbol (and good luck charm) for the town of Rijeka on the Croatian north Adriatic coast. This is not some sort of blackface stereotype. The legends of Morcic have a number of sources and you can pick which to accept according to your patriotic, historical or romantic leanings (to show where you are from, to celebrate a military victory over the Ottomans, as a symbol of friendship when an Italian contessa granted freedom to a servant she cared for very much). The morčić motif can be seen throughout the city and is widely recognised, and jewellery and souvenirs, which were prolific, reaching their peak in the 19th century (but disappearing after World War 2) are once again being produced. Rightly or wrongly I’m sure they will be cancelled.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1994
MADE FROM: wood , material , ceramic material.
MADE IN: Croatia
MANUFACTURER: Tarsatic Art
DIMENSIONS: 12cm x 17cm
PLACE REPRESENTED: San Juan Del Sur , Nicaragua
ITEM: T Shirt
NOTES: A simple but effective T Shirt in blue celebrating the beautiful west coast beach town (up and coming resort town) in Nicaragua.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 2013
MADE FROM: cotton
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: Polo Ralph Lauren (well, the tag says it is …. and maybe it is, the tag. I doubt the rest of the shirt is.)
DIMENSIONS: Adult
PLACE REPRESENTED: Abruzzo , Italy
ITEM: Ashtray
NOTES: “Ricordo d’ Abruzzo”. A “Remembrance of Abruzzo. This is a simple but stylishly detailed copper ashtray from the Italian region on the Adriatic..
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1960s
MADE FROM: Copper
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 14.5cm diameter
PLACE REPRESENTED: Darwin, Northern Territory , Australia
ITEM: Tray
NOTES: A tray showing the various sites of Australia’s wild north capital, Darwin. This is from the late 1960s or early 1970s and not much has changed since. Just kidding. In any event I leave it to Darwinians to tell me if this was before or after the devastating Cyclone Tracy which decimated Darwin in December 1974.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1960s
MADE FROM: steel
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 28cm diameter
PLACE REPRESENTED: The Basilica of St Peter , Vatican City
ITEM: Wall Ornament
NOTES: The Basilica of St Peter (S Pietro) done in thin tile mosaic on wood. This is small, but in its own way, quite striking. The mentioning of Rome as the location of the Basilica (and Vatican City) is probably superfluous.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1980s
MADE FROM: wood , tile
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 17cm x 12cm
UKRAINE – Kiev – Wall Plate
PLACE REPRESENTED: Kiev , Ukraine
ITEM: Wall Plate
NOTES: Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, is commonly known as the “City of Domes”. In the foreground is the Great Lavra Bell Tower and behind it are the domes of St. Sophia Cathedral or maybe St. Michael’s Golden-Domed Cathedral or maybe Kyiv Pechersk Lava Monastery … https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Lavra_Bell_Tower
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1980s
MADE FROM: ceramic material
MADE IN: Germany
MANUFACTURER: Rosenheim Porzellan
DIMENSIONS: 19cm diameter
PLACE REPRESENTED: Lovran , Croatia
ITEM: Wall Ornament
NOTES: A small wall ornament with a picture of the old town of Lovran on Croatia’s north coast. Rustic and pretty.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1973
MADE FROM: wood
MADE IN: Croatia probably
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 8cm diameter