What the Blaise's??

Ceridwen has started something here!! Several people have been moved to blip charms/special objects ( Chaiselongue, , gpzero ; Kendall and Kathgordon) and it got me thinking and rummaging. This is a more a cabinet of curiosities - without the cabinet. You will need to biggify! This is what there is starting from the left hand corner:
Silver bracelet from Afghanistan given to me by my Granny, how she got it I'm not sure
Little Dutch clogs, a reminder of a dirty weekend in Amsterdam
Little Japanese clogs given to himself by a Japanses student
A Roman oil lamp from Tripoli collected by himself when he went there in his youth on a photography assignment
A piece of Greek pottery picked up in an olive grove in Turkey, so evocative, you can run your fingers along the same ridges that the potter created with his fingers
A crystal ball, a remmnant from himself's days of impressing people with his glimpses into the future ( his palm-reading was legendary, but preferably when a little liquid refreshment had been taken)
Look carefully now to see three tiny tessera picked up from Pompeii (I know, it wasn't big or clever but I couldn't resist)
A scarab now made into a charm, bought (not haggled for, I was useless) in a treaure trove in Cairo
Underneath is a small brooch given to me by my granny again, and she always swore it was given to her by a member of the Swedish royal family
Going up - a tiny jointed fish given to us by an Israeli boy we let camp in our garden
A Venetian glass sweetie brought back as a present from an ex pupil
Then a very small bit of the Great Pyramid (very small , really. I know...)
And finally a little carved face from Zimbabwee
The whole lot is on an Indian embroidery.

Two other bits of information - did you know today is St Blaise's Day? I was astonished but delighted to find that special masses are going on today where you can have your throat blessed for St Blaise is patron saint of sore throats (and wild beasts). Apparently he was martyred with steel combs!

Tonight were are all revolting. The Taoiseach is arriving for after dinner speeches at a retirement 'do' in Bantry and we have all been asked out to protest about the implicated cuts to small schools. We are amassing at 9.30pm = yes, it's now raining. We are meeting at the cemetary gates - I feel a bit of Morissey coming on.
Have a wonderful weekend.