This is the last item from my grandmother's house and thus, my father's home-before-the-care-home and therefore also the last item from my childhood that I have rescued. It is my grandmother's bread bin and has been my father's for the past 25 years. As he no longer needs to store bread, he graciously let me have it. Graciously is a euphemism, it was more, what do you want that old tin for anyway.
When during my childhood, we visited my grandmother we would always have a look into that tin just in case she did have some of her soft home baked rolls in it - not often, usually it was Franconian sourdough bread. My father had the exact same bread in it over the years.
At the moment it's empty, we spent the weekend polishing 25 years of neglect from its surface and got half way to my grandmother's standards. It's solid copper, you need two hands to hold it. For the time being I am keeping it. If the price of copper soars one day when we are old and poor, we will sell it and live the life of luxury.
I should be sentimental but no. I have a considerable selection of my grandparent's Wilhelminian period wardrobes (2), bedside cabinets (2), too-short bed frames (2), sideboards with cracked marble tops (1), all in full use around the house, and what my grandmother referred to "the vertico", which I am currently attempting to sell because we replaced it with a cheap and nasty but enormously handy ikea press (which we managed to scratch while assembling). The vertico could look fabulous (for a beautiful one, not exactly like mine, click here) but currently it is showing its age and the years of use. It always stood in the hall of my grandparent's house and held hat boxes, a basket of leather and lace gloves, a shelf of many scarves and most importantly, the fox stole. Next to it was the umbrella stand with the fancy sun umbrellas. Apart from the fox stole, I still have the hats and most of the gloves and some of the scarves and of course, the fancy umbrellas. My daughter played with all of these things as did I when I was small.
I should mention that on the back of the vertico is a stamp by the US army, declaring it as German property item 16 on loan. The US army had confiscated my grandparent's house for several years after the war.
In other news, we had a good day of rain, we harvest plenty of fresh lettuce, rhubarb, radish and I am watching the baby apricots and pears and peaches and plums. Also, the spuds are pushing up.
I've always wondered what people did before plastic bags, to store bread. And now I know.
ReplyDeleteYour garden is coming up beautifully.
I love that you have so much of your grandmother's things. There is something about holding so much history in our hands that feels like a connection back in time. Your garden looks beautiful.
ReplyDeleteWonderful tin for storing bread! You've reminded me of what we called a "bread box" when I was a child. I don't remember when my mother stopped using it. I don't remember buying a "bread box" once I was on my own. In my family, we grew up eating both "Wonder Bread" (ridiculously lacking-in-nutrition commercial white bread) and San Francisco sourdough bread which was substantially healthier for us and extraordinarily delicious. We also ate a lot of "English Muffins."
ReplyDeleteLovely vegetable garden!
The copper bread tin is a beauty! I can see why you would want it. I have a few things of my grandparents and almost all of them are very practical. I have my grandmother's Revereware pots which I use daily. They are still in excellent condition!
ReplyDeleteThat's a lovely tin. I had no idea what a vertico was and when I clicked on the link all the pictures are broken but from your description I guess it's what we call a hall tree. I have several pieces that belonged to my grandparents...a marble top side table and a glass lamp, originally an oil lamp converted at some point to electric, a morris chair, an old pitcher, a corner whatnot (display stand). I had the drop leaf table for a while but when we got a bigger dining table my sister took the drop leaf.
ReplyDeleteThat's a gorgeous copper bread bin. I like practical items that get handed down like that.
ReplyDeleteThe copper bread tin is lovely, the patina of age making it all the more so. When I tried to absorb my mother's beloved things, and a few of my aunt's as well, into my own home, I finally understood why old people live in such crowded spaces. I am now doing my darndest to release the ghosts, to see them as merely "things." It's hard. Some of those things are lovely and will never be again.
ReplyDeleteI think that to hold onto things purely because they belonged to your ancestors is not to be recommended, but if the item has personal meaning that changes the equation entirely. The copper bread tin seems to all into the latter category.
ReplyDeleteThe bread tin is gorgeous. thank you for polishing it up. My greens are still tiny things. We are having a v cold spring with lots of rain. The slugs are extremely healthy
ReplyDeleteI had to click the link to understand what a "vertico" was. It sounds like maybe it would be worth rehabilitating the old one, rather than replacing it with the "cheap and nasty" Ikea cabinet! Maybe rethink that?!
ReplyDeleteWhy were old bed frames all so short? I know people weren't as tall back then, but I'm surprised the difference was so great that it shorter furniture was de rigeur.
Lovely memories with your copper bread tin. Sounds like your garden is thriving. Very attractive vertico.
ReplyDeleteThat's an amazing bread box. I am glad you kept it and hope you won't need it for money but will use it to store soft rolls!
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