Emmy’s Odds and Ends

(4 photos)

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In Toledo, Spain, Emmy liked the steel plates and other objects, that have 22 and 24 carat gold hammered into a design. Some are very expensive, but the 5 1/2 inch plate we bought didn’t cost too much, but we don’t remember how much we paid. For my mother, we bought a small decorative “pin,” made with hammered gold and silver.
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1676

In an antique shop in Baddeckenstedt, Germany, Emmy’s eyes were riveted on a boxed set of six serving spoons. But even though they were sterling and engraved with her initials, she hesitated, so no sale. However, the next day Emmy found the proprietor’s home, and for that week, her antique shop was open on Wednesday morning in addition to its normal two days a week. These days just one sterling silver serving spoon can cost $100 or more, in California, so she thinks she got a real buy! Emmy is thrilled with the initials “eh,” amazing!

Inside the box of spoons is the name “Franz Jenrich Juwelier, Quedlinburg,” a town, a few miles east of here, located in what had been East Germany, for 40 years. A few years later, after the Berlin Wall fell, we visited the jewelry store and met the wife of a grandson of Franz Jenrich. She was delighted to hear our story, and Emmy was tickled to find the origin of her serving spoons. High on the outside of the building, the name Franz Jenrich and the date 1904 are painted on a horizontal half-timber, indicating his jewelry store must date from early in the twentieth century.

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1674

Afghan

The first time we visited Ljubljana, Yugoslavia, was on the 4th of July. It was a holiday in Yugoslavia, but we never found what they were celebrating.

The outdoor market, with food and clothing, was open in spite of the rain. We bought a hand loomed wool Afghan. A woman (speaking German) told the seller she was charging too much, the seller said, “They are Americans, and can afford it.” They didn’t know Emmy understood German. They sure loved Americans (President Carter had visited a few weeks earlier), especially when they were spending money.

One department store had clothes, kitchen equipment, tires, tools, small motorcycles, and all those things we might expect to find in a Sears store. The products appeared to be of satisfactory quality, but the displays and layout in Ljubljana’s stores were nothing to boast about. Italians do display best.