Souvenir Nation

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William L. Bird Jr.

Princeton Architectural Press, New York, 2013, English

Nonfiction, Product/Industrial Design; Nonfiction, Art and Cultural History

7 x 8.5 inches, hardcover, 176 pages, 65 color illustrations

ISBN: 9781616891350

Suggested Retail Price: $24.95

From the Publisher. Buried within the collection of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History exists an astonishing group of historical relics from the pre-Revolutionary War era to the present day, many of which have never been on display. Donated to the museum by generations of souvenir collectors, these ordinary objects of extraordinary circumstance all have amazing tales to tell about their roles in American history. Souvenir Nation presents fifty of the museum s most eccentric items. Objects include a chunk broken off Plymouth Rock; a lock of Andrew Jackson's hair; a dish towel used as the flag of truce to end the Civil War; the microphones used by FDR for his Fireside Chats; and the chairs that seated Nixon and Kennedy in their 1960 television debate.

Smithsonian curator William L. Bird, Jr., regales us with the story of each artifact s origins and the quirks of fate that brought it to the museum. Strikingly photographed, these curious objects form a uniquely American narrative: a cabinet of curiosities representing our nation s most fascinating individuals, both celebrated and obscure, and the keepsakes they left behind. This fascinating collection of Americana includes an introductory essay on this nation's passion for souvenir collecting, as well as a brief history and a glimpse behind the scenes of the Smithsonian. An accompanying exhibition opens in Washington, D.C.'s Smithsonian Castle in Fall 2013.

Also see “Putting the NO in Nostalgia.”

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