UFOs (Unloved Filipino Objects), 2024—ongoing

UFOs (Unloved Filipino Objects) is a curated photographic record of items I’ve gathered at local estate sales and dug out of thrift bins in St. Louis while looking for things related to the Philippine Village and my family’s contributions. Some objects I found in the homes of former US soldiers. Others had been discarded and were en route to the landfill, buried under broken Christmas trees and American refuse. For now, these objects live with me. It has become an experiment in organizing my own collection outside of an institutional framework, as well as a study of how these things arrived here through war, migration, tourism, or chance. I also include objects that have been adopted into Filipino culture (e.g. Vicks VapoRub) and objects that are meaningful to me as part of the diaspora in St. Louis.

This page is organized chronologically with the most recent finds listed first and will be updated regularly. Relevant items are also crosslisted on the Philippine Village Historical Site collection page. Miscellaneous items for sale can be found separately in my tindahan. Kindly do not republish images without my permission.

Color illustration print of the Igorot Village during the 1904 World’s Fair, produced for the *St. Louis Post-Dispatch* on June 5, 1904. Found in the basement of a house at an estate sale.

Small nipa hut with miniature items, including a hat, bag, and hammock. 7x7x9 inches. 1960s-1980s. Found 2/26/26.

Model of a stilt house with a secret compartment and ashtray. 1960s-1980s. Found 2/26/26.

Carved kamatsile/monkey pod fruit, serving utensils, and other wooden objects. Mid-20th century. Found throughout 2025.

‘Banana Papaya’ sculpted ceramic plate (not Philippine made). Contemporary (post-2000s). Found 12/17/25.

Miniature toy basket with lid (mouse for scale). Likely late 20th century. Found 11/14/25.

Two paintings that look like home. Unsigned. Mid to late 20th century. 11 1/2 x 9 1/2 inches. Found 11/10/25.

Love does not consist of gazing at each other but in looking outwards in the same direction. — Handprinted card produced by political detainees in Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya with a quote from Saint-Exupéry. Likely 1960s-1980s. Found 8/21/25.

Woven bamboo basket, possibly for storing garlic or ginger. Mid-20th century. Found 8/20/25.

Barnes-Jewish Hospital BJC Healthcare St. Louis Snowglobe — Snowglobe of the hospital where I was born at the site of the 1904 World’s Fair. Late 20th century/contemporary. Found 8/20/25.

Filipino doll with red duster and tsinelas. Produced for Pier 1 Imports in the Philippines around the 1990s. Found 8/8/25.

Miniature sinamay hats, flowers, and fans with a ‘Made in Philippines’ sticker. Produced for American craft stores in the 1990s to early 2000s. Found 8/7/25.

Rare Vicks VapoRub ceramic drug store mug. Stamped ‘Buntingware’ on the bottom. 1960-1970s. Found 7/29/25.

Souvenir miniature nipa hut ornament with hang tag. 1990s to early 2000s. Found 7/21/25.

Igorot kulikug, a woven rattan basket used for storing cho-om, or pinipig (roasted, pounded rice). Early to mid-20th century. Found 7/16/25.

Tiruray/Teduray monom biton basket from Mindanao. Bamboo, rattan, and nito vines. Mid-20th century. Found 8/31/24.

Oval-shaped bilao with star pattern. Date unknown, likely mid-20th century. Found 8/10/24.

Pair of large, egg-shaped bamboo nesting bilao. Date unknown, likely mid-20th century. Found 8/10/24.

Color illustration print of the Igorot Village during the 1904 World’s Fair, produced for the *St. Louis Post-Dispatch* on June 5, 1904. Found 7/20/24.

Handcarved wooden bilao with banana leaf. Date unknown, likely mid to late 20th century. Found 6/4/25.

Souvenir bahay kubo in a bottle. First object I found in the basement of a house at an estate sale on 3/29/24.

Identification Sources and Further Reading:

Kulikug: Museo Kordilyera collections

Political detainee art: Shackled Art

Tiruray/Teduray basketry: Monom—Teduray weaving tradition