These humble butter spades tell a story of a bygone age. They are cast from the original pair loaned to the Outdoor Museum by Michael Curley- who comes from a long line of master grocers with a proud history of supplying fresh provisions, beginning in Glasgow in 1914, and now in Helensburgh, since 1999.
This plinth celebrates the sculpting of butter. The grooved sides of the spades are used to shape a mound of butter into a block, and the flat sides to smooth it. Michael’s mother, Isobel, skillfully wielded the spades to serve butter to customers in the Curley’s shop in the Gorbals, from 1950 to 1970. The Buffet Shop in front of you proudly displays the original pair.
