For the month of July in my 2026 wall calendar I chose this photo of a typical Swedish rural idyll. It is one I took last year at Bullerbyn - "The Noisy Village" - in the Swedish province of Småland. The real name of the place is Sevedstorp; and it is the village Astrid Lindgren had in mind when she wrote her books about The Children of Noisy Village. And it is the village where Astrid's own father grew up. (You can /re-/read my post about it and see more photos here, in a post from August 2025.)
In case it's not obvious to all readers, the two containers in the foreground are milk churns (cans), which at small farms used to be put out on platforms like that by the road, to be picked up by a truck to be delivered to the nearest dairy.
That is indeed a calendar worthy shot of rural life...I would guess some milk is still sent to market that way, if those cans were left out just last year.
ReplyDeleteBarbara, this village is a tourist attraction now, with a café in the barn. There were some sheep in a field, but no cows. Those cans would just be for decoration.
DeleteMilk churns are such a reminder of days gone by. I doubt they were really as romantic as they seemed.
ReplyDeleteJanice, so do I! ;)
DeleteThe post has made me realise that our dairy has closed down and the churns at the farms is a thing of the past. Oddly I don't actually recall being aware of the change before now.
ReplyDeleteGraham, I'm not sure exactly when it changed here either. Probably a gradual process, but I doubt any milk has been collected from roadside "milk tables" like that since the previous century.
DeleteSo pastoral and pretty! I knew these jugs had something to do with milk, but not exactly what.
ReplyDeleteMilk Churns! I remember them well, they are a common sight in rural Australia, but I could not remember the "churn" part of the name when I searched online wanting to buy one.
ReplyDeleteI searched my huge old Atlas for Sevedstorp but it isn't there. I like to look up places and see where they are in relation to me.
I recognised Bullerby immediately! It is a lovely picture, and perfect for July.
ReplyDeleteOn my Steinheim walk, I always come past stone "benches" by the road between Marbach and Steinheim. They aren't benches (they are about as high as a bar would be today) but served the same purpose of your milk tables.
Such a peaceful setting.
ReplyDelete