Abstract
This article uses a collection of mementos curated by Robert James Tennent, a middle-class man, to interrogate how objects materialised love and sex in Ireland. It problematises readings of courtship tokens as simple objects of affection, and considers how individuals engaged in culturally-sanctioned courtship practices in extra-licit ways. Gifts and tokens took on new meanings when they were accessioned into the personal archives of their owners and catalogued as mementos of past relationships. Read as a collection of courtship mementos and a homemade pornographic archive, this article argues that the collection provides an unique insight into the curation of sexual memory.
Original language | English (Ireland) |
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Pages (from-to) | 247 |
Number of pages | 263 |
Journal | Cultural and Social History |
Volume | 19 |
Issue number | 3 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 18 Apr 2022 |