Artefacts
The Brighton Historical Society artefacts and ephemera collection is yet to be catalogued. Objects range from the bizarre (an oddly shaped hand-knitted object made by the Lovely Learned Luscious Ladies of Brighton) to the beautiful (a skeleton clock which was a wedding gift to the architect Alfred L. Smith in 1864).
Not all of our artefacts can be displayed due to conservation concerns and lack of space, but you will find plenty to see and study in our regularly rotating displays.
Right: A lacquered box, containing documents written in Chinese, which also acted as a pillow at night. Found at Lewis Street, Brighton North, at a property previously owned by a Chinese market gardener.
Pulpit, hand-carved. Made by W. S. Maling of Canterbury and hand-carved by Beatrice Cumbrae-Stewart, this pulpit, along with a litany desk and baptismal font cover, were donated by St Peter’s Anglican Church, Were Street, Brighton Beach.
Large teddy bear, circa 1950. Won in a raffle at a dance by Pat and Alan Stuart. Donated by Valda Trenberth.