Toothpick Holder

Location:
Part of a new batch of UFOs, this particular one was like a bit of meat stuck between our teeth. It has some history attached to it, but is small enough to be annoying it left alone. So in the interest of filling some space before next week's focus on marriage, the UFO Team has decided to pick out this morsel before it became a toothache.

Description:
Made of white porcelain, this small cup-like vessel is labeled with a local druggist's advertisement. Next to the ad is a red rose. On the top and bottom, there is a pattern of recesses that are filled with a black paint to give the effect of depth and texture. There appears to be trace amounts of gold leafing in these recessed areas as well.

The bottom is covered with an old piece of masking tape that has numbers written on it.

Unique Marks:
Across the front face - "Compliments of Trindle, The Druggist, Oconto, Nebr."

On the bottom - "1920, 22"

History:
Oral family history places this on the dinner table as a toothpick holder. Countless pieces of stray food were removed by grabbing a toothpick from this very UFO. Trindle "the druggist" did have a store in Oconto, Nebraska. Exactly which Trindle ran the store, was "the druggist," or gave this UFO away is unclear. But Trindle's store in Oconto did appear to be a popular place as evidenced by this photograph from 1910 by Solomon D. Butcher.

Photos:




References:
Library of Congress, Retrieved on January 8, 2008 from http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?psbib:1:./temp/~ammem_ChS1