Name/Title
Souvenir keychain, PragueEntry/Object ID
2025.1.65Description
A souvenir keychain whose fob is a small molded red plastic tire (a detailed miniature with tread and sidewall patterning) framing a central two-sided photographic medallion behind a gold-tone metal bezel. One face shows a black-and-white view of a twin-spired Gothic church (the Church of Our Lady before Týn, on Prague's Old Town Square); the reverse shows a castle-and-river view (Prague Castle/Hradčany above the Vltava) captioned "PRAHA" (Prague). The fob hangs from a brass-tone link chain with a hinged C-shaped snap key ring. Both images are the same object (the two faces of the medallion).Use
Probably a gift of Leopoldo Arús Caraballo to Leopoldo Arús Gálvez. Alternatively, a gift of Leopoldo Arús Caraballo's Czechoslovakian friends to the family.Collection
The Cabrera Arús family collection, Leopoldo Arús Gálvez collectionMade/Created
Place
Country
CzechoslovakiaRegion
Eastern EuropeContinent
EuropeNotes
MAKER: Unknown; unmarked as to manufacturer. A mass-produced tourist souvenir; the producing workshop is not identified.
DATE / PERIOD: Not marked; later twentieth century, Czechoslovak period (i.e., before the 1993 split, and the "Praha" souvenir trade fits the socialist-era tourism of roughly the 1960s–1980s).Inscription/Signature/Marks
Notes
MARKINGS / INSCRIPTIONS: "PRAHA" (printed on the castle/river view). No maker's mark, country line, or other text visible.
Languages: Czech ("Praha" = Prague).Relationships
Related Person or Organization
Person or Organization
Leopoldo Arús CaraballoNotes
probable purchaser, gifterPerson or Organization
Leopoldo Arús GálvezNotes
probable ownerRelated Places
Place
City
HavanaCountry
CubaRegion
Caribbean, Central AmericaNotes
usePlace
City
PragueCountry
CzechoslovakiaRegion
Eastern EuropeContinent
EuropeNotes
acquisitionResearch Notes
Notes
This is a tourist souvenir keychain from Prague, of a common socialist-era type in which a novelty fob (here a miniature tire) carries small photographic city views; the captioned "PRAHA" and the recognizable monuments — the Týn Church on one face and the Castle/Hradčany-and-Vltava panorama on the other — identify the city and confirm a Czechoslovak origin. Such items were sold to visitors and are themselves modest evidence of travel.Created By
María A. Cabrera ArúsCreate Date
October 2, 2025Updated By
María A. Cabrera ArúsUpdate Date
June 18, 2026
