PLACE REPRESENTED: Ghana, Africa.
ITEM: Ornament
NOTES: Beautifully detailed and carved. Large, very evocative and quite striking.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s (but it could be earlier)
MADE FROM: wood
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 25cm tall
PLACE REPRESENTED: New Zealand
ITEM: Wood and leather salt & pepper shakers.
NOTES: Salt & Pepper shakers made of wood with a center bound in what appears to be leather, etched with Polynesian symbols and Kiwi birds.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: wood , leather (I think).
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 12cm high , 4.2cm diameter around base.
PLACE REPRESENTED: Llangollen (specifically Plas Newydd) , Wales
ITEM: Display Plate
NOTES: Llangollen is a small town in north-east Wales. On the outskirts of the town is Plas Newydd (“New Place” or “New Hall”).
Plas Newydd was home to the Ladies of Llangollen, Sarah Ponsonby (1755-1831) and Lady Eleanor Butler (1739-1829) who came from aristocratic stock in Ireland. They moved in in May, 1780 and renamed it Plas Newydd, or New Hall. Here they stayed for the next 49 years, rarely spending a night away from home. Over the years they created a house and garden that drew visitors from across Britain. They became celebrated throughout the country as the story of their friendship spread through Regency Society, which made Plas Newydd a byword for intellectual stimulation and educated refinement. http://www.britainexpress.com/attractions.htm?
I don’t know when this plate is from but it certainly was made before PC times, the “the Ladies of Llangollen house” is refered to as the “Old maids’ house” on the plate.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s (pre PC times)
MADE FROM: ceramic material
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 15.5cm across x 15.5cm high
PLACE REPRESENTED: Niagara Falls, Canada and United States
ITEM: Souvenir Spoon
NOTES: Niagara Falls on a spoon. It seems a little underwhelming to depict the falls in this way.
So who “owns” the falls? Type that into google and the best answer you get (on answers.com) is “No one actually “owns” Niagara Falls. It is part of the Niagara River. The international boundary between Canada and the US runs through the Niagara River. There are three falls at Niagara Falls. The American Falls and the much smaller Bridal Veil Falls are in the US. The spectacular Horseshoe Falls is almost entirely within Canada. Both nations use the water in the river for hydroelectric power. Niagara Falls is a major tourist attraction both in Canada and the US. So I assume the falls we all recognise are within Canada though a lot of the rest is within the United States.
The maple leaf symbol on the spoon, however, firmly indicates Canada as the spoon’s origin..
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: steel
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 11cm long
PLACE REPRESENTED: Kings Canyon, Central Australia , Australia
ITEM: Salt & Pepper Shakers
NOTES: Kings Canyon is part of the Watarrka National Park in Northern Territory, Australia, about 323 km southwest of Alice Springs. The plant depicted, the Sturt Desert Pea, is one of Australia’s best known wildflowers and is native to the arid regions of central and north-western Australia.
I’m not sure what plant is more prevalent at King’s Canyon but I do note that Sturt’s Desert Pea is the State floral emblem for South Australia not the Northern Territory. The Northern Territory has Sturt’s Desert Rose as it’s emblem.
How’s that for trivia?
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: ceramic material
MADE IN: Australia
MANUFACTURER: Crow’s Souvenirs
DIMENSIONS: 9cm tall
PLACE REPRESENTED: Florida , USA
ITEM: Salt & Pepper Shakers
NOTES: Alligators and Florida ….go together like salt and pepper?
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: plastic
MADE IN: Hong Kong
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 7cm high , 8cm wide
PLACE REPRESENTED: Arta Terme , Italy
ITEM: Wall Ornament
NOTES: A mass produced wooden artifact – insert town name at bottom.
Arta Terme is a province in far north western Italy which explains the slightly alpine look in the trinket. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arta_Terme
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: wood
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 8cm across , 18cm high
PLACE REPRESENTED: Antrim Coast , Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann)
ITEM: Tea Pot Stand or Rest
NOTES: I know it’s a “tea pot stand” because it’s shaped like a tea pot and has “tea pot stand” written on it.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: cork
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 21cm across
PLACE REPRESENTED: Sarina, Queensland, Australia
ITEM: Salt & Pepper Shakers
NOTES: True kitsch – clearly manufactured en masse with space for your home town to be written in later. Also, I’m sure you couldn’t walk your feet off around Sarina. It’s not that big.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: ceramic material
MADE IN: Japan
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 8cm across, 4cm high each
Another view of the feet for you podophiliacs —
PLACE REPRESENTED: Rothenburg , Bavria, Germany
ITEM: Small Ornamental Wall Plate
NOTES: The old town of Rothenburg depicted in vivid colours.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: ceramic material
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 9.5cm across
