Summary
This collection of small ornate shoe buckles stored in a blue Capstan tin date from between 1930s and 1970s. Used by Stanio Fancoff as fasteners for his various shoes, these buckles indicate both Stanio's attention to detail and ornamentation within his shoemaking craft and the fashion of the time.
Stanio Ivanoff Fancoff was born in 1908 in Bojentsi, a small village in Bulgaria. At age 11, Stanio left home to learn the shoemaking trade. In 1929, he immigrated to Melbourne, settled in Fitzroy and began to work for the V.G. Zemancheff & Sons basket shoe factory in South Melbourne. In1936, he married Dorotea Georgi Touzou who had recently arrived in Australia. Around this time, Stanio set up his own shoemaking business from home, with Georgi, her cousin and sister weaving the shoes which he then assembled. Select shoe samples were then taken to Sydney and Tasmania for sale. In 1942, Georgi and Stanio moved to Broken Hill for Georgi's health; there daughter Nancy was born and Stanio set up a shoe shop/factory. In 1945, Georgi died and by 1950 Stanio and Nancy had moved to Adelaide where he again opened a shoemaking business and shop. He passed away in 1978, having been in the shoemaking business for 59 years. This collection documents his migration and working life experiences.
Physical Description
Small round blue Capstan tobacco tin in which many small ornate buckles are housed. These small silver buckles are essentially plain with a patterned buckle border.
Significance
This collection is significant in documenting a small migrant business as well as the fashion of a particular period. It is well provenanced and charts the application of trade skills in a new country. It also illustrates the stages of hand shoe manufacture from the 1930s, demonstrating the enduring nature of the tools and patterns that were used.
More Information
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Collecting Areas
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Acquisition Information
Donation from Nancy Vasileff, 21 Mar 2007
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Past Owner or User
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Inscriptions
Text, Lid top, printed: CAPSTAN/ TOBACCO (underlined) Text, Lid top side, printed: MADE IN AUSTRALIA FOR W.D & H.O WILLS (AUST) LTD, SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA 2 OZ NET WEIGHT WHEN PACKED Text, Tin Sides, printed: CAPSTAN READY RUBBED FINE CUT TRADE/MARK CAPSTAN READY RUBBED FINE CUT Text, Tin Base, printed: VACUUM SEALED / TO OPEN - TWUST CIUB/ PAT'D No. 106.226/38
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Classification
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Category
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Discipline
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Type of item
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Overall Dimensions
20 mm (Length), 14 mm (Width)
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Maximum dimensions
84 mm (Width), 33 mm (Height)
Measurement From Conservation.
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References
R.A. Salaman, 'Dictionary of Leather-working Tools c.1700-1950 and Tools of Allied Trades,' London: George Allen and Unwin (Publishers) Ltd, 1986 [Section 2: Boot and Shoe Maker pp18-185]. John Peacock. 'Shoes, The Complete Sourcebook,' London:Thames & Hudson Ltd, 2005. NAA holds file (online) on Vasil George Zemancheff, Fancoff's employer
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Keywords
Boot & Shoemaking, Bulgarian Communities, Bulgarian Immigration, Immigration, Small Businesses, Tools