This week I continued reading about Moirs chocolate factory with a MA thesis titled "Much More Than Chocolate": A Mosaic of Identity in Moirs Advertising, 1830 to 2007 written by Holly Ruth Hanes (2020). This thesis contains a number of photographs of Moirs chocolate boxes and advertising, as well as a list of product names. Indeed, it was the appendix of this thesis that led me to discovering the proper name of the Malted Graham Sandwich Bar that I made a few months ago in an attempt to recreate a nostalgic chocolate bar from a friend's memory.
While the history of the Moirs company presented in Hanes' thesis is interesting, what really caught my attention was the practice of including trading or collectors' cards in boxes of chocolate and/or chocolate bars. This was a common practice across the industry and Moirs used imagery that reflected a regional identity, like nautical themed scenes in the 1910s and 1920s. Souvenir post cards were also inserted in boxes -- they were trendy at the time and "consumers bought into the giveaway mentality" (p. 34).
This demonstrates, of course, that humans haven't changed much in the last 100+ years. We all love free stuff. Remember getting toys and DVDs in cereal boxes? I think I still have my copy of The Mask. Today, stickers are commonly added to art boxes and products, and have a similar collectible status.
Collections are an interesting human practice. I've been thinking about that more and more in the last few years, and most recently on my trip home. Through my life, I've had many different collections -- and they mattered and had meaning at different points in time. A stamp and coin collection kicked off by a few Newfoundland samples of each owned by my grandfather. A collection of ceramic cats inspired both by my love of cats and the collecting practices of an aunt. A collection of lapel pins spurred by an international Girl Guide camp that I attended where trading occurred. Two collections of china dishes, one pattern I associate with my maternal grandmother and one pattern that was owned by my paternal grandmother.
But what do you do with these collections years later when you've changed and they no longer have the same relevance in your life? (Note: I'm talking about coins and lapel pins, not china dishes. The china dishes bring significant joy to my life every time I use them for a dinner party with friends.)
That's a big question for a Sunday morning, so I'm not actually seeking answers and I'm certainly not offering any, though you should feel free to comment if you have thoughts. But I do love the concept of surprise post cards or trading cards in a box of chocolates that can be mailed to a loved one or collected and traded with friends.
What have you collected throughout your life?
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