The old Russian city of Vladimir has many interesting and unusual museums. One of them is the private Spoon Museum, the only one in the world. It is located in the historic center of the city, in a building of 1917 on the street. Oktyabrskaya, 4. The museum was opened on June 12, 2015. The founder of the museum is Tatiana Pikunova, director of the VIP-Tour travel agency, a collector with almost 25 years of experience.
In her collection there are more than 15 thousand spoons – silver, pewter, wooden spoons (made of birch, oak, linden and even coconut), porcelain, cupronickel, from different countries, different in purpose, author’s spoons, spoons of the Romanov dynasty, etc.
At the age of 16, her mother gave Tatyana a set of spoons made of blackened silver, from which her passion for spoons and Russian silver began. Tatiana wanted to know the history of pre-revolutionary silver, who these masters were and where they were from and their fate after the revolution. She was interested in how the fate of these world-famous factories developed.
The first geographical spoon appeared at Tatiana at the age of 17.
A friend brought a spoon from New York with the Statue of Liberty. This spoon hangs on a geographic spoon stand.
The purpose of the museum is to show the spoon we are used to from different angles. The museum displays items from 150 countries. The museum has a unique atmosphere where every guest is welcome. Here you can find out how a spoon was used in Ancient Egypt? Why did you go to visit with your spoon? Where did the tradition of giving a spoon for the first tooth come from? What is the purpose of the coronation spoon?
In ancient Egypt, spoons were refined in shape, they were made from bone and precious wood. Some of them were designed with an opening lid and there is speculation that these spoons were used for cosmetic purposes (mixing components or storing them). Such spoons are kept in Paris, in the Louvre, and in the museum in Vladimir, similar spoons were made by a Shuya master, and the “Syrian carrying gifts” and “Demons” spoons were made by a master from Uruguay.
The museum has an interesting Welsh Spoon or Love Spoon from Wales.
It was made of wood by local youths and presented to their lovers. The spoon was considered a declaration of love, could contain some kind of wish and served as a gift instead of flowers and a ring. Of course, they did not eat such spoons – they were kept and passed on to their children. On the handles of these spoons, you can see various symbols of family well-being – intertwined rings, a heart, a horseshoe for luck, a lock, etc.
Also on display is a unique set of spoons from the 19th-20th centuries. These are exhibits with images of the monarchs of Great Britain. From Queen Victoria to Edward VIII.
There are Winsor dynasty coronation spoons.
The coronation spoon is one of the regalia of royalty. She was crowned King John in 1199. It is used together with a golden vessel in the shape of an eagle with consecrated oil for anointing. The best jewelers of the country in the year of coronation receive permission to make a copy of the coronation spoon. This spoon is a talisman. In the museum you can see spoons made since 1901, starting with Edward VII. The scoop of such a spoon resembles the shape of a walnut.
The museum displays items from the Romanovs’ house, such as spoons and sugar tongs made at the Klingert factory, as well as Faberge items.
The city of Vladimir is directly related to the history of the spoon. The founder of the city, Vladimir Krasnoe Solnyshko, immediately after the Baptism of Rus, commanded to eat with special devices, and not with his hands. He even issued the first written decree on the manufacture of silver spoons for his squad.
On one of the showcases there is a series of spoons “Thumbelina”. These are US spoons made in the 20th century. Each series contains 6 spoons, each spoon has a miniature lid at the end of the handle. On the inside of the lid, a fragment of a fairy tale is written in small letters.
The museum has an amazing collection of Olympic spoons.
One of the stands presents the stages of making a wooden Russian spoon. Here are spoons with various types of painting: Vladimirskaya, Northern Yagoda, Mezenskaya, Glubokovskaya, Tumanovskaya, Khokhlomskaya. For the Vladimir spoon, a berry ornament is used: rowan, cherry, raspberry, pear, apple, gooseberry. The process of making a tablespoon takes up to 6 days and employs up to 5 people.
The museum regularly holds master classes on spoon painting, table etiquette, table setting, you can buy souvenirs and even send a postcard from the museum.
Having visited this unusual museum, we took a fresh look at the usual things and got great pleasure.
