Mementos from the 1956 Summer Olympics, Australia

An arrangement of 50 matchboxes printed with the flags of various countries. Below are several postcards relating to the Olympic event, and Australian money

 

Living in Canada since 1960, A. Bacevičius originally reached Australia after leaving the DP camps in Germany. To commemorate the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, he collected these matchbox covers of “Flags of the World”. The political climate was intense at that time. It was the height of the Cold War, the Soviet army had just invaded Hungary to suppress an uprising against the government and as a result, several countries boycotted the Summer Olympics. Yet, in this environment, the matchbox manufacturer decided to include the flag of independent Lithuania in the series.

There is also an ad for an amateur basketball match with team “Lithuania”. A. Bacevičius was on the team.

A matchbox, Brymay Redheads brand, marked No. 72 Lithuania. Displays a pen and ink brightly coloured drawing of a Lithuanian flag.
A listing of the teams for a basketball game: USS Frank E. Evans V. Lithuania (Australia). Lithuania wore green and the team members were S. Dargis, R. Gasiunas, E. Ginciauskas, people with surnames Kincaitis, Bacevicius, Kalade Ceikis, and V. Soha

This post is also available in: LT