1939-1940 New York World's Fair Souvenir Pin, "Bakelite"
date: label: Date made
content: 1939
label: Associated Date
content: 1940
label: Associated Date
content: 1939
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: Souvenir stick pin from the 1939-1940 New York World's Fair. The pin features the Fair's signature architectural features, the Trylon and the Perisphere.
label: Description (Brief)
content: The Trylon was a 610 foot triangular pylon, and the Perisphere a massive globe, 180 feet in diameter. A 950 foot ramp known as the Heliceline connected the two, and together, the three features constituted the Fair's "Theme Center."
label: Description (Brief)
content: Designed by architects Wallace Harrison and J. André Fouilhoux, the buildings, comprising simple yet novel forms, were marvels of engineering consistent with the Fair's goal of exhibiting a "World of Tomorrow." In that vein, the interior of the Perisphere featured a dynamic dioramic exhibit, "Democracity," intended to inspire visitors with visions of future urban utopias.
label: Description (Brief)
content: Images of the Trylon and Perisphere were used as logos for the Fair, and were featured on an abundance of souvenir items like this pin. Made of Bakelite, the first fully synthetic plastic, the pin cleverly uses its rounded end to represent the Perisphere.
label: Description (Brief)
content: During its run, the 1939-1940 New York World's Fair attracted nearly 45 million people to its site in Flushing Meadows. After the Fair, the steel used to build the Trylon and Perisphere was given to the U.S. military to support its efforts in the Second World War.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: New York, Queens
label: Associated Place
content: United States: New York, New York City
label: Associated Place
content: United States: New York, Queens
topic: label: Subject
content: Expositions and Fairs
label: related event
content: New York World's Fair (1939)
setName: label: See more items in
content: Culture and the Arts: Entertainment
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: The Larry Zim World's Fair Collection
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1989.0438.1476
label: catalog number
content: 1989.0438.1476
label: accession number
content: 1989.0438
label: catalog number
content: NY1939B20
objectType: label: Object Name
content: Stickpin
label: Object Name
content: pin
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: plastic, bakelite (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 1 1/4 in x 2 in; 3.175 cm x 5.08 cm