Plastic objects, visible in our large-scale everyday life since the 1930s, would shape our perception of reality and become an integral part of our lives, whether in toys, civil engineering or in the production of medical equipment. The list goes on and on.

Recognizing the relevance of this material, the importance of the plastics industry, as well as the intense debate on its use, the FCT-funded research project PTDC / IVC-HFC / 5174/2014, “The Triumph of Bakelite – Contributions to a history of plastics in Portugal “, developed in CIUHCT – FCUL, under the coordination of Maria Elvira Callapez, in close partnership with the Museum of Leiria, prepares for an exhibition on the History of Plastics in 2019.

For this exhibition to be truly representative, we would like to challenge the whole community:

Your plastics can be important! Share with us your, your parents’ and your grandparents’ childhood toys, everyday life objects, devotional artefacts, radios, telephones, cutlery, boxes, furniture, shoes, lamps, cups…

We appeal to your memory and the memory of your relatives. Look in the crates stored in the basement, in the closets that have been closed for decades, and in the forgotten attic and dusty boxes.

Let’s build the history of our industry and our country, which is based mainly on the stories of each one of us.

Please send what you have found, by July 2018, accompanied by pictures of the objects, to museudeleiria@cm-leiria.pt