Lions and Pineapples and Orbs, Oh My!

It’s not their prime habitat, but lions and pineapples can indeed be found in North Vancouver. Along with orbs, urns, and miscellaneous other concrete post ornaments. We’re far less wealthy than East Vancouver in these cultural icons, but they are still a part of our North Shore neighbourhood.

My project was to map the concrete fence ornaments in the City of North Vancouver, and to learn a bit about that underappreciated part of our diverse culture and history. This was also an excuse to ride all the streets of the city, including ones not on my routine point-A-to-point-B routes. And a reminder about how much you don’t see if you don’t look…

Lions, pineapples, and the whole concrete menagerie prefer Vancouver Specials, the big affordable houses of the late ’60’s and 70’s favoured by recent arrivals from southern Europe for their large or hoped-for-large families. A lot of yard space, plus a cultural fondness for bricks, mortar and concrete, provided ideal conditions for these creations to flourish. The Tinucci family at Ital Decor on Hastings St did the rest, producing almost all the fence-post ornaments throughout Vancouver (and continuing to this day – see this excellent article in The Tyee).

I found 28 well-adorned houses in North Vancouver. Most are indeed large, two-storied, with prominent brickwork standing out from their more common wood or stucco neighbours. That 28 houses was recently 29, but a lovely orchestra of concrete angels playing musical instruments disappeared (though the brick fence posts remain, sadly barren). And 28 is soon to be 27, with the dreaded development-variance sign leaning against one aged pair of lions. Houses from the’70’s are a threatened habitat in North Vancouver.

Being a naturalist, I was thrilled by the diversity of the concrete biota. Lions are the kings of the concrete post ornaments, with 3 subspecies here (although the distinct Chinese version apparently hasn’t made it across Burrard Inlet).

Pineapples are a traditional symbol of hospitality – or maybe of flagrant wealth. But with further botanical research, what I thought were variants on the basic pineapple design turn out to include pine cones (a traditional symbol of squirrels dropping things on your head, in my experience), and even maybe an artichoke’ish thing.

Orbs and urns are both common, but never, I noticed, on the same fence line. I believe this is because urns are the anti-particles of orbs – if they are put together, they annihilate each other in a blaze of pure energy.

And finally, that rarest family, the Miscellanea. Ornaments that any fence post – and any community – would be proud to host.