Bank, Still

Title:

Historical Society Building, Concord, N.H.

Object Name:

Bank, Still

Object ID:

2017.020

Place of Origin:

Ayrshire, Scotland

Date:

circa 1915

Description:

Still bank. Souvenir of the New Hampshire Historical Society, c. 1915. Mauchlineware. Rectangular sycamore box with scored lines on four sides. Horizontal oval print of "HISTORICAL SOCIETY BUILDING, CONCORD, N.H." on top. Horizontal coin slot on front, near top.

Material:

Wood
Sycamore

Dimensions:

H-2.25 W-3.5 D-2.6 inches

Provenance:

Purchased by the donor on eBay. These boxes were probably made and sold as souvenirs in Concord after the opening of the New Hampshire Historical Society's new building in 1911.

Mauchlineware souvenirs were made in Mauchline, Ayrshire, Scotland and other Scottish communities from 1840 to 1939. These objects were part relic, part commodity. There was a commercial rationale for this combination: the manufacturer used the appeal of the wood as a relic, while transforming the raw material into a distinctively modern consumer product. As leisure travel became more common, souvenir commodities evolved from relics. By the 19th century, tourist-consumers had access to a large market of souvenir merchandise. Porcelain plates and cups, novelty needle cases, glasses cases, pin cushions, napkin rings, boxes, and other souvenir trinkets were collected by tourists during trips and brought back to be displayed in Victorian homes as mementos of a trip.

Credit Line:

Gift of Paul O. Bofinger

Subjects:

Souvenirs, New Hampshire Historical Society, Sycamores