A co-worker of mine purchased a New Beetle this Summer. We were discussing them - I've driven a New Beetle since April '04 - and she wondered, "...why on earth it would have [a bud vase] built into it?"
Hmmnn... My initial reaction was, “Because the original Beetles had them.” And that’s true; the bud vase in the New Beetle is an obvious homage to the original Beetle.
But that then begs the question, “Why did the original Beetle have a bud vase?”
After some research, I believe I have the answer.
The genesis of the bud vase is the opulence common in high-end automobiles during the early parts of the 20th century. This was the era when the well-to-do would purchase luxury cars without ever intending to drive them. They had servants (drivers) for duties so mundane. No expense was spared to make the rear compartment luxurious: tapestry, silken pillows, exotic wood, silver tea sets, etc… In contrast, the driving compartment sometimes did not even have a roof which was a holdover from earlier times when the coachmen sat outside in order to drive the horses! Among the luxuries of the rear compartment was the bud vase and ever present fresh cut flowers.
As the car evolved away from the motor coach paradigm, certain makes and models retained the bud vase in a shared compartment for drivers and passengers. It was a simple feature that suggested a whiff (literally) of class. How ironic then that it came to be associated with the original Beetle; a car for the common man and woman if there ever was one!
1 comment:
We bought a new bug in 1957 with the optional bud vase. Lovely vase! Nice touch! My point is that the vase in the old days was not standard equipment. I'll bet that some enterprising German invented and marketed that rig and it became popular there and, eventually, among American bug-owners, too.
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