PLACE REPRESENTED: Ireland
ITEM: Tea Towel
NOTES: Irish Family names on a map of Ireland with the usual symbols of Ireland : the thatched roof cottage, Glendalough Round Tower, a Celtic cross, a drinking cup and a gold collar. I’m not sure how accurate it is an ancestry location locator but many, many Irish surnames are shown.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: 52% linen, 48% cotton.
MADE IN: Ireland
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 45cm x 65cm
PLACE REPRESENTED: Israel
ITEM: Wall Plate
NOTES: A stylish, old school looking brass plate depicting Moses and “Israel” in English and Hebrew along the bottom. Moses was the leader of the Israelites dating back to the 13th century BC. The most important prophet in Judaism and one of the most important prophets in Christianity, Islam, the Druze faith, the Baháʼí Faith, and other Abrahamic religions.The plate, like Israel, is intricate, substantial and permanent.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: steel (brass?)
MADE IN: Israel (I suspect)
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 25cm diameter
PLACE REPRESENTED: Slavonia , Croatia
ITEM: Box
NOTES: A very familiar Croatian souvenir from the “Yugoslavia era”, though still manufactured now. Wood, pyrography (wood decorated with burn marks), some basic colours and a postcard glued into place. As I have said before, I love these souvenirs. They are sturdy, vivid and distinctive. This one depicts five towns (Đakovo, Valpovo, Osijek, Vinkovici, Vukovar) in Slavonia, Croatia’s north easter region. Functional and decorative.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: wood
MADE IN: Croatia (probably)
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 20cm x 16.5cm x 5cm high
PLACE REPRESENTED: Queensland , Australia
ITEM: Wall Ornament
NOTES: “I got a boot out of Queensland”. I’m sure you did. Getting a boot can be good or bad, depending who you ask, though it’s generally meant to be favourable. A souvenir of the “insert place name here” variety, this boot is usually used for ‘cowboy country” type places. So, in that respect it does apply to Queensland, at least inland and the outback.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: ceramic material
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 13.5cm across x 16.6cm high
PLACE REPRESENTED: Hervey Bay (specifically Pialba), Queensland , Australia
ITEM: Coffee Mug
NOTES: Pialba is a coastal town and central business suburb of Hervey Bay, Shown is the Urangan Pier (which is actually in Urangan … though much of a muchness). The Hervey Bay railway line from Maryborough to Pialba opened in 1896 and was used to transport harvested sugarcane to the Maryborough Sugar Mill in addition to daily passenger trains. The extension to Urangan and the Urangan Pier ( 1107 metres) opened in 1913 and was used for the transfer of cargo between rail and ships. It was closed in 1985, and 239 metres of it was demolished, but, due to public outcry, 868 metres of the pier was left. The photograph on the mug is taken from the end of the (then railroad) pier looking back to the mainland.
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: plastic
MADE IN: Australia
MANUFACTURER: Patina
DIMENSIONS: 11cm high x 7.5cm diameter
06LACE REPRESENTED: Venezuela
ITEM: Small Wall Plate
NOTES: A small wall ornament depicting the Venezuelan coat of arms from 1954 – 2006. The horse changed it’s position subsequently and perhaps its politics. It faces right here, and now faces left. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coat_of_arms_of_Venezuela
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: ceramic material
MADE IN: unknown
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 9cm diameter
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: 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: 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
PLACE REPRESENTED: San Juan Capistrano, California , USA
ITEM: Wall Plate
NOTES: San Juan Capistrano is in California and is the site of a Catholic mission (founded in 1776 and named after Giovanni da Capistrano (1386–1456), the Franciscan Saint from Capistrano, in the Italian region of Abruzzo) for which it is named. San Juan Capistrano is also known for its cliff swallows (birds) and there are parades, legends and songs (“When the Swallows Come Back to Capistrano”) about the same. Swallows migrate 6,000 miles from Goya, Argentina to San Juan Capistrano in large groups and the town welcomes visitors from all parts of the world to witness the return of the swallows, a tradition that has been celebrated since the early 1930s. Their origin? In his book, “Capistrano Nights”, Catholic Priest Father St. John O’Sullivan, Pastor of Mission San Juan Capistrano, tells how the swallows were being shooed away he said “Come on swallows, I’ll give you shelter. Come to the Mission. There’s room enough there for all.” and the next day they were building nests in and around the Mission. All the sites of this small town are there including the statue of Saint Junípero Serra,a franciscan priest who founded many mission in the area. including this one. http://www.missionsjc.com/about/swallows-legend/
YEAR (APPROXIMATE): 1970s
MADE FROM: ceramic material
MADE IN: Korea
MANUFACTURER: unknown
DIMENSIONS: 20.5cm diameter