Mauchline Ware are wooden souvenirs manufactured in Scotland, primarily in factories in or near Mauchline and predominantly made of sycamore. The items have various finishes in a large variety of applications. Most Mauchline Ware products have transfers or photographs of popular tourist locations. There were also finishes with tartan, fern and black lacquer.
On offer here are these two little Mauchline pieces. They are more unusual items.
We have listed 1/ A Diamond Shaped Novelty Pin Cushion. The top and base are made of honey-coloured wood. The top shows an image of Rhuddlan Castle in Wales. The other side shows Bodelwyddan (Marble) Church or St Margaret's Church in North Wales. The pin cushion part is the claret coloured velvet textile area running as a border between the top and bottom. There are tiny areas of rubbing to the pile of the velvet but no holes or tears to it. Dimensions: Height is 6.5 cm. The width is 3.7 cm and the depth is 1 cm. Welsh images on Mauchline ware are more unusual (£35).
2/ The is a honey-toned wooden page marker - which you would slot into the page of a book that you were reading to keep a note of the page that you had stopped at. It has the tradition image of Burns Cottage. And also the inscription: Made of Wood That Grew / On the Banks of the Doon / Bought in the Cottage. So this is a wee souvenir that would have been purchased in the 19th century in the cottage itself. The length is 11 cm. It is in good condition with a little rubbing to the widest end where is has rubbed against the pages of the book. But there are no breaks - and it is such an interesting wee Victorian souvenir. (£30 - to take into account the rubbing, please see my images).
Both pieces will be posted to you with Royal Mail Recorded delivery - this will be applied to your order at the checkout.
HISTORY: Mauchline Wares are Scottish wooden items which date from about the 1880s - until the 1900s. They are generally wooden souvenirs and giftware - made of fruitwood and decorated with black transfer designs. The scenes are usually of landmarks and popular towns - and spots favoured by tourists. They were very popular in their day and many pieces were exported globally.
The centre of the Mauchline Ware industry is the small village of Mauchline - which is located 11 miles inland from the Scottish coastal resort of Ayr. At its peak over 400 people were involved in the manufacture of these small (but always beautifully made) wooden souvenirs. Similar products were also made in Lanark - but most of the pieces are known by the generic name of Mauchline Ware.