Museum of Science and Industry

A new display of early twentieth century Christmas handkerchief designs will be shown at MOSI (Museum of Science & Industry) this month as part of a Christmas activity trail which also includes models from the animated film The Nightmare Before Christmas, directed by Tim Burton.

The quaint pictures, which were printed onto souvenir handkerchiefs and presented as seasonal gifts, include festive scenes of Father Christmas, snowmen and a surreal sequence of a child’s dream about Christmas. Copies of the designs are displayed in the Museum’s Loft restaurant and Collections Centre.

The designs date from 1900-1914 and are part of a series in a book which were created by Thornliebank print works, which had a design studio in Portland Street, Manchester, at the Calico Printers’ Association. As well as the unusual designs, MOSI’s Christmas trail includes other items, such as the props created by the late Manchester animator Paul Berry, who also created puppets for animated films such as James and the Giant Peach and The Wind in the Willows.

Archivist Ceri Forster said: “We wanted to create a festive trail that was fun for all the family and that showed off some of the more unusual items in our collections.  It is a chance for visitors to see new additions to the collections alongside rarely displayed items from the archives.”

The Christmas Trail runs until 22 December.

For more information or images please call Sarah Roe on 0161 606 0176 m: 07847 372647 or Diane Inglis on Tel: 0161 606 0173.

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