“Little Malte’s first boots”. “Little Ingrid’s first boots”. The Holmgren siblings were born around 1910. Both pairs of boots have clearly been worn but they appear not to have been inherited by any other children.
We do not know much more than this. But someone wrote the children’s names under the soles of their first boots, and the children themselves saved the boots right until they were donated to the Gothenburg Historical Museum in 1969.
Sentimental value is the value that can mean the most to individuals but seldom means anything to a large group of people. The objects become valuable because they are closely tied to significant events or people – they act like keys used to awaken memories.
Often these objects are not very valuable outside their specific contexts but their stories can create bridges and relationships between people.
6601
Brown children’s shoes
A pair of children’s laced shoes in brown leather and lined with pale cotton fabric. The shoes are 11.5 cm long. They were worn by Elin Sarauw, who was born in 1886. She was married to Georg Sarauw, who became the head of a new archaeology department at Gothenburg Museum in 1912.
GM:9975
6602
Blue children’s
shoes
A pair of children’s laced shoes, which were worn at Axell Winell’s christening in 1842. The shoes match a christening gown. The shoes are embroidered with wool yarn in three shades of blue in a lightning bolt pattern. The soles are leather and the shoes are 11 cm long.
GM:14359:2
6603
Light blue
baby shoes
A pair of baby shoes in light blue silk. They are quilted and were fastened by a strap around the ankle. A small rosette made of silk ribbon is on each shoe. The soles are leather and the shoes are 11.5 cm long.
GM:22173
6604
Red and white
baby shoes
A pair of baby shoes in size 20. They are made of soft white leather with red leather on the sides. They have four pairs of eyelets for laces but only one of the shoelaces has survived. The toes are decorated with a heart-shaped pattern. On the bottom of one sole the name “Henriette” is written in pencil.
GM:23449
6605
Malte’s boots
A pair of children’s boots made of brown leather with eyelets for laces and leather soles. On the bottom of one sole are the words “Little Malte’s first boots”. The boots are 12 cm long and were probably made about 1910. They were donated to the museum by their wearer, Malte Holmgren.
GM:26881
6606
Ingrid’s boots
A pair of children’s boots made of brown leather with five pairs of eyelets. They are lined with pink flannel. On the bottom of one sole is written “Little Ingrid’s first boots”. The boots are 13 cm long. The boots were probably made about 1910. They were donated to the museum by their wearer, Ingrid Holmgren.
GM:26882
6607
Light-brown children’s shoes
A pair of children’s shoes in soft light-brown leather. The shoes were fastened with double straps and have two round light-blue buttons on one side. The shoes have light-coloured edging and a tassel made of light-coloured yarn on each toe. They are 13 cm long and were probably made about 1910.
GM:26883
6608
Black children’s boots
A pair of children’s boots made of black leather with black cotton laces. The soles are leather and the shoes are 13 cm long. They were made in Copenhagen and worn in 1889.
GM:27823
6609
Brown children’s shoes
A pair of brown leather shoes for a small child. They have a strap with a buckle across the toes. The shoes are 14 cm long. They were donated to the museum by graduate engineer Folke Reyde and were worn by his daughters, who were born in 1930 and 1933.
GM:29230
6610
Red baby shoes
A pair of baby shoes in red leather. They have an ankle strap that fastens with a small round button. The soles are red and the lining is made of white cotton fabric.
GM:30156:4
6611
Dark-brown children’s boot
A buttoned children’s boot in stout dark-brown leather. The boot is 13 cm long. The name “KARIN” is deeply carved on the bottom of the sole. The boots were worn by Karin Jakobsson. Born in 1889, she was a labourer’s daughter and lived in the Dickson Foundation building on Föreningsgatan. The boots were probably made in the 1880s. The other boot is missing.
GM:30479
6612
Blue children’s rubber boots
A pair of children’s rubber boots in size 21. The boots are made of dark-blue rubber. The soles are red and the tops of the boots are edged in red with a reflector strip all the way around. Inside they are marked “LBK”. The boots were made in the 1950s and the brand is Tretorn. They were saved when the former nursery school Lundby barnkrubba was torn down.
GM:38244
6613
Beige children’s boots
A pair of children’s buttoned boots in beige leather in size 19. The boots are fastened with four straps and covered buttons. The bottom of one sole is stamped “A 19” and “Granath & co Örebro”. The boots were acquired from an orphanage run by the association Sällskapet Myrorna.
GM:39034
6614
White baby
shoes
A pair of baby shoes in soft white leather in size 18. They have an ankle strap and a small white metal buckle. The shoes are in a cartonboard box with no lid. Two labels are stuck on the box, one from the manufacturer and another from the retailer Nordlöfs in Gothenburg.
GM:39035
6615
White baby
shoes
A pair of baby shoes in white leather with laces and beige soles. They were donated to the museum by Maria Tornberg, born in 1958, who wore them as a baby.
GSM:150010