Today, the Somerset village where I live held its annual Village Day. The subject was Writhlington and the Second World War. I noticed this child's gas mask. It was known as the Mickey Mouse mask, but looks nothing like the cartoon character. The bright colours and name were used to lessen the frightening purpose of the mask - to protect against poison gas attacks by the Germans.
Our American allies produced a Mickey Mouse mask for their children and it really did look like Mickey! If anything, this one is even more sinister. Click on the title of this post for a link to photos and a history of the US version.
Ooh, I find these really sinister too Laurie - it's a good word to describe them. There is extre weird-ness because of the bright colours. I love your photos, you find the most odd and unexpected things which is so facinating! I am a gnome fan too, and can often be found clambering in to other people's gardens if there is an interesting gnome to be photographed! I even the the word...gnome gnome gnome, lovely!
ReplyDeleteIt just looks like a very surreal piece of sculpture. I'm sorry to hear that it had another purpose. For real? You definately have an eye for intriguing pictures.
ReplyDeleteThe more I look at them, the more sinister I find them. It is very unsettling, a bit like that frightening Doctor Who episode when everyone started growing gas masks out of their faces - shiver!!!
ReplyDeleteso frightening, you can just imagine the poor wee ones having to wear those!
ReplyDeleteYou have no idea how frightening. When I was a war correspondent in the first Gulf War (1991), I had to wear a gas mask overnight as I slept to get me used to wearing it. It was suffocating. I had no problem walking around the desert wearing one during alerts and taking photographs etc. but sleeping - that was another matter!
ReplyDeleteWOW, that is quite the photo. I can not imagine how it must feel.
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