Name/Title
"Pine Needle" toilet soapEntry/Object ID
2025.1.211Description
A small rectangular bar of toilet soap in its original printed paper wrapper, unopened. The front is green with a black-and-brown illustration of a pine/fir branch and cone and the product name "PINE NEEDLE" in pale lettering. The reverse is plain green, printed with the maker's stylized cat's-head emblem in a rounded square and the country of origin in English and French. The wrapper is soiled and worn; the soap is a solid mass within.Use
Kept and forgotten in a box in the Arús Caraballo householdContext
Sold in the parallel state marketCollection
The Cabrera Arús family collectionAcquisition
Accession
2025.1Notes
Soap was found in a box stored in a closetMade/Created
Manufacturer
Konsum Seifenwerk RiesaPlace
City
Riesa* Untyped Place
G.D.R.Region
Central EuropeContinent
EuropeEdition
Pine NeedleNotes
Maker: Konsum Seifenwerk Riesa (the GDR's consolidated soap works), identified by the cat ("Waschkatze") emblem. "Made in German Democratic Republic / Produit de la République Démocratique Allemande."
Date: Likely circa 1968–1990 (tentative). No production date is printed; the cat logo was introduced in 1968 and the GDR (and the firm in this form) lasted until reunification in 1990, which brackets the wrapper to that span.Inscription/Signature/Marks
Location
Paper wrap (front)Transcription
Pine NeedleLanguage
EnglishMaterial/Technique
InkLocation
Paper wrapTranscription
Made in German Democratic Republic
Produit de la Republique Democratique AllemandeLanguage
EnglishMaterial/Technique
InkNotes
Also in FrenchDimensions
Height
3 cmWidth
8 cmDepth
5 cmRelationships
Related Person or Organization
Person or Organization
Gertrudis Caraballo GálvezNotes
userRelated Places
Place
City
HavanaCountry
CubaRegion
Caribbean, Central AmericaNotes
acquisitionPlace
City
Riesa* Untyped Place
G.D.R.Region
Central EuropeContinent
EuropeNotes
productionResearch Notes
Notes
The English/French country-of-origin text indicates this was packaged for export markets. Konsum Seifenwerk Riesa was the GDR's centralized soap producer (soap production was concentrated there in 1960), and by the 1980s it was the country's sole producer of Kernseife and exported a substantial share of its output. "Fichtennadel" (pine needle / fir) was an established GDR soap/bath line, here issued under an English-language "Pine Needle" name for export.Created By
María A. Cabrera ArúsCreate Date
April 19, 2022Updated By
María A. Cabrera ArúsUpdate Date
June 9, 2026
