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Volume 24 Number 3 , 2013 M F e r r o r m y B C C h I r S i s & t m t a h s e t P o o t A t l e l r y FROM THE PRESIDENT Dear Collector; As the year draws to a close, its time to think about the good memories that we have made this year. The good byes and hellos we have said and be thankful for both! Belleek has a new selection of ornaments for 2013 and I hope at least one will speak to you and join your collection, whether you are starting a new one or adding to an existing one. A wonderful time was had by all who attended our final convention in Las Vegas, but we hope to have future gathering in the months and years to come. We are part of the large family of Belleek and we reach around the globe. You never know where you will meet a fellow Belleeker! To you and your family I wish you all a very Happy Christmas and a Happy Healthy New Year! Babys First Christmas 2013 Angela BELLEEK BABY Angela Moore President, Belleek Collectors International Society ORNAMENTS Baby gifts from Belleek for 2013 from Belleek, include The Belleek Collectors International Society two adorable ornaments. Belleek Pottery, Main Street, Belleek, My daughter is expecting a Christmas baby, so I'm excited Co. Fermanagh N. Ireland BT93 3FY about becoming a grandmother [e-mail [email protected]] for the second time! I definitely want the Baby's First Christmas Teddy Bear Bell Ornament #4115, just like the one I had for HOSTESS GIFTS FOR THE SEASON the older sister who joined us in 2011. With lots of visiting this holiday season, the perfect hostess gift would be the very pretty Belleek House Blessing Wreath #2292. But the big sister won't be Larger than the standard ornament, this piece can still be hung on the Christmas left out as she will have her own tree. However the beauty of it is, that its not just a Christmas Wreath. The ribbon Belleek Baby Frame Hanging is a beautiful Belleek cream color and will work any time of the year, hung in Ornament # 4123 a window or a wall. The shamrocks speak of spring and St. Patrick's Day or to remind of your Irish roots. The great little Belleek Snowflake Votive #4118, is another pretty little hostess gift. The little pierce pot will allow the candle light to shine through. This piece is alsi quite versatile and could easily be filled with potpourri. The hand painted gold stars make this piece really Pictured at left, Snowflake Votive and at right, House Blessing Baby Frame Ornament Wreath To order ,please contact Patricia McCauley at [email protected] or visit our website at www.belleek.com at 2 BLARNEY CASTLE ORNAMENT BELL Blarney Castle, as viewed today- photo at left, is the third to have been erected on this site. The first building in the tenth century was a wooden structure. Around 1210 A.D. this was replaced by a stone structure which had the entrance some twenty feet above the ground on the north face. This building was demolished for foundations. In 1446 the third castle was built by Dermot McCarthy, King of Munster of which the keep still remains standing. The lower walls are fifteen feet, built with an angle tower by the McCarthys of Muskerry. It was subsequently occupied at one time by Cormac McCarthy, King of Munster, who is said to have supplied four thousand men from Munster to supplement the forces of Robert the Bruce at the battle of Bannockburn in 1314. Legend has it that the latter king gave half of the Stone of Scone to McCarthy in gratitude. This, now known as the Blarney Stone, was incorporated in the battle- ments where it can now be kissed. Blarney Castle, Cork The Belleek Blarney Castle Bell #4122, (pictured at Left) is the seventh in the Castle Bell Series. Visitors to Ireland often make their way towards Cork and just outside the city is the famous castle. This beautiful Belleek Bell Castle Ornament is certainly of one of the most recognized sites because it house the famous Blarney stone. If you never kissed the Blarney Stone, then gift yourself with a wonderful ornament of the castle its in, for your Christmas tree THE STONE OF ELOQUENCE For over 200 years, world statesmen, literary giants, and legends of the silver screen have joined the millions of pilgrims climbing the steps to kiss the Blarney Stone and gain the gift of eloquence. Its powers are unquestioned but its story still creates debate. Kissing the Blarney Stone Blarney Castle Bell Getting the gift of the Gab Once upon a time, visitors had to be held by the ankles and lowered head first over the battlements. Today, we are rather more cautious of the safety of our visitors. The Stone itself is still set in the wall below the battlements. To kiss it, one has to lean backwards (holding on to an iron railing) from the parapet walk. The prize is a real one as once kissed the stone bestows the gift of eloquence. KILMALKEDAR CHURCH BELL ORNAMENT Kilmalkedar is a mid 12th century romanesque church situated near the tip of the Dingle peninsula overlooking Smerwick harbour. (Pictured at right)The church is similar to Cormac's chapel at Cashel built of dressed sandstone blocks. The church has some native Irish features such as stone antae projecting at the end of the church. It is a nave and chancel church. The west doorway is a classic round arched romanesque doorway. (Picture below)The chancel is separated from the nave with a decorated entrance to the church and a surviving chancel arch. In the grounds of the graveyard surrounding the church at Kilmalkedar there are several other monuments, including a sundial and alphabet stone. The Saint's Road, a medieval pilgrimage route to Mount Brandon passes by the Kilmalkedar Church Bell church. The Belleek Kilmalkedar Church Bell Ornament #4112, faithfully reproduces the style of the 12th century church, which would have had a stone roof. Its romanesque door is also beautifully detailed on this bell. It will look really spectacular lit from within by a Christmas tree light. This is the newest in the Church Bell series of ornaments. To order these ornaments, please contact Patricia McCauley at [email protected] or visit our website www.belleek.com Romanesque Door Kilmalkedar Church, Kerry 3 BCIS CONVENTION 2013 , LAS VEGAS, NV The October 2013 Belleek Convention in Las Vegas, saw many firsts and lasts. It was the last of the biennial conventions hosted by our chapters and it is the last time we will choose a Belleek Honoree. We did promise that this convention would be a special one and that we'd go out with a bang. So for the very first time, we named 150 Honorees to our Belleek Hall of Fame!!! While there will be no future Honorees, by our counting, we have one a year for the next 150 years! Included in this special group are no less than nine of our Honorees from pervious years, who may now consider themselves "Double Honorees". Over the last ten plus years, many of the members attending our last convention had also been to many others. These folks include former Chapter presidents, individuals who have worked on pervious conventions and many whose family members have been involved with our collectors group for years and they are following in their footsteps! Every single person named to our 2013 Hall of Fame is well deserving of this honor and recognition. The most difficult part was keeping it a secret until the convention and we have no doubt that it was a surprise to all who attended. Above is a group photo, but you may go to the Belleek Face Book page to see individual photos. The convention program kicked off with a trip down the Memory Lane of Conventions by our M.C. Don Campbell (Honoree 2001 & 2013). As always, Don did a wonderful job pushing us along and keeping everyone on track and on time. The lectures during this convention were among the best so far and perhaps in future issues we can bring you a synopsis of each. Chris Marvel (Honoree 2013) told us his Shaggy Dragon Story and at this point all I can say is, it has to be seen to be believed! Chris was the photographer at the Gala dinner, aided and abetted by Paul and Patrick Tubb, who told us he really was a shy one - something else not to be believed. Can I say that Chris was matched by his wife's, Beverly Marvel (Honoree 2013), lecture on Belleek Cooper Printing Plates. Beverly made the discovery that a rather amateur looking Belleek black mark stamp, always thought to be a fake, was actually produced at Belleek. I am looking forward to sharing Beverly's photos and information on that in a future issue too. Perhaps Beverly will make it the subject of a future book. At the convention Beverly debuted her new book, co-authored by Tony Fox, also of the UK Collector's Group - "Belleek Black Mark Tea Ware" (Photographed below) Generously, Beverly and Chris gifted a book to each and every member at the convention, as what turned out to be an Honoree Gift. Perhaps Beverly and Tony could be persauded to reprint some additional copies of the book for sale to interested members? We will get back to you on that one.