A Piece of Gibsons goes to Poland

We receive visitors to our Museum & Archives from all over the world, but not all of our visitors come through the building’s front door. Our website and blog help us to reach people that may not have the opportunity to visit us in person.

We recently had a pleasant exchange with Mr. Dominik Sasim, a private collector from Warsaw, Poland. Mr. Sasim collects museum tickets and lapel pins, and he happened to contact us to inquire about acquiring items to add to his collection. We happily sent Mr. Sasim a Sunshine Coast Museum & Archives rack card and a Town of Gibsons lapel pin, in exchanged we asked him to share a bit about himself and his collection. He wrote,

I have been collecting lapel pins and badges from museums all over the world for over two years now.

My hobby has begun with the collection of post stamps together with my father. Later I switched to badges and lapel pins from various museums.

See Gibsons'  Molly's Reach - 2nd row down, 2nd pin from the right.

Now, after nearly two year of collecting I have managed to gather over 600 of them, out of which 300 are of foreign origin. My collection expands mainly thanks to exchange with other collectors as well as via internet auctions. My friends and colleagues also remember of my hobby and often bring these small souvenirs  for me from their domestic or international voyages. Additionally I often visit museums myself in search of new gadgets for my collection. With some of them I maintain contact relation. Sunshine Coast Museum & Archives has recently made me a great surprise: they have sent me beautiful lapel pin for my collection!

The oldest and most valuable exhibit in my collection is the badge from the already nonexistent Mausoleum of Zwirko and Wigura in Cierlicko that dates back in 1935. I also posses rare exhibits from most remote locations in the world, like for example the ones from Dorothy G.Page Museum in Wasilla, Alaska, or from the Hakutsuru Sake Brewery Museum in Japan. My favourite badge is the one form the Juna Museum of Earth from Szklarska Poreba as well as the badge representing   Bluenose II Lunenburg schooner from the  Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic in New Scotland.

This is in fact only a start of a collection which I intend to systematically develop and expand with new exhibits!

Museums & Archives are wonderful places for sharing histories, stories, and interests. We are fortunate to be able to be part of people’s lives, including those that live on the other side of the world.