Cropped transparent version of Image:Olympic flag.svg (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Since the Olympics are just a few weeks away, I thought I would talk about how paper ties into the Olympics. I bet you’ll never guess what the first Olympic Pins were made from…I’m sure if I said metal you would be suspicious since this blog is dedicated entirely to paper.
In fact, according to an article by the Coca Cola Company titled, “Olympic Pin Trading,” “The first Olympic “pins” – actually cardboard disks – were originally designed as colorful badges to identify athletes, officials and the news media for the first modern Olympic Games, at Athens in 1896. Some Olympians that summer were exchanging their pins as gestures of good will, and a tradition started to take root.”
I tried to find a picture of the first Olympic pins; however, I was not able to find one. I imagine that they are quite rare and valuable.
Did you know the first Olympic pins were made from cardboard? Have you ever seen one? Do you collect Olympic pins.
