Summary
Japanese ceramic chopstick rest, brought to Australia by Machiko Mizuta when she migrated as a war bride from Japan in 1952. Machiko Mizuta met Douglas Bryce, an Australian army engineer, during his posting to Kure in occupied Japan in the late 1940s, where she worked in an office. They married in Australia in 1953 and encountered both acceptance and prejudice before settling in a war service home in Clayton. Machiko remained in Australia with her children after Douglas' death.
Japanese brides initially received five year temporary residency visas. Then in 1956 after extensive lobbying by the Country Women's Association and the Returned Services League the law was amended to allow them to become citizens. This change was part of a gradually whittling away of the remnants of the White Australia policy.
Physical Description
Small ceramic chopstick rest, white and blue in the shape of a boat. The rest has a raised block at the centre with a point at one end and flat at the other.
More Information
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Collection Names
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Collecting Areas
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Acquisition Information
Donation from Mr Charles Bryce, Sep 2006
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Place & Date Made
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User
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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
73 mm (Width), 18 mm (Depth), 15 mm (Height)
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References
From Kimono to Sushi. The Japanese in Victoria, Immigration Museum Community Gallery room brochure, 2006 [Link 1] (Australia-Japan Research Project)
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Keywords
Food & Drink Consumption, Japanese Communities, Japanese Immigration, War Brides, Weddings
