For this blog post I decided to use an antique item that belongs to both my sorority and my grandmother.

What you are looking at is a 1-inch tall, sterling silver spoon pin, reminiscent of a sugar spoon.  At the top of the handle is a crest with a Greek inscription as well as some symbols. A long, sharp needle is fastened on the back of the spoon, starting from the top of the handle and going down the entire length of the object. At the sharp end of the needle is a clasp and hook that can be opened or locked to secure the spoon onto clothes as a pin. It is a simple design and its most obvious function is clear.

What is unclear is where or how it was made. It is impossible to know just by looking at the object where it was made, as the only inscription on it (other than the crest) is the word “sterling,” indicating that it is sterling silver. No company, brand, town or location has claimed this particular pin, other than Alpha Kappa Phi.

My grandmother was a member of Alpha Kappa Phi, Agonian Sorority, Incorporated at SUNY New Paltz between 1950 and 1954. The spoon pin was the sorority’s traditional sister pin that is bestowed upon you when you officially “cross” or become a member of Alpha Kappa Phi. It becomes your first set of letters and proves to everyone that you really belong to this organization. Presuming this pin was brand new at the time she became a member, this pin must be at least 63 years old. My grandmother owned this pin until I also became a member of Alpha Kappa Phi. She passed this on to me, along with some other sorority paraphernalia. When I became an official member of my sorority, I also received my own pin. It is very different than my grandmother’s; the pin I received is teeny-tiny with just the letters “ΑΚΦ” in gold. The reason for a spoon pin is that, traditionally, sororities were supposed to maintain and provide hospitality. Thus, the spoon serves as a symbol of this hospitality and a signal to others that that is what this sorority stands for. Other sororities also founded at a similar time as mine (around 1880) feature almost an identical spoon pin, with the particular sorority’s crest on the top of the handle. So, the spoon pin serves a couple of functions. One, as said before, is as a symbol of hospitality. The second function is that the pin serves as a method of proudly displaying to the public that my grandmother and I are a part of Alpha Kappa Phi, and we alone are given the unique privilege of wearing this pin.

I can tell that this pin has received much wear and tear throughout its ~63 years of life, as it has several scratch marks all over it. However, it is still going strong; the clasp and the pin itself are in good shape, and I am able to wear it occasionally. It is always pretty funny to see people’s reactions when they realize that I literally have a spoon on my shirt! While my grandmother has a whole host of other Alpha Kappa Phi things that she plans to give to me someday, this spoon pin is by far the most historically and personally significant. It represents not only Alpha Kappa Phi as an organization and sisterhood, but also that even though traditions may change, it isn’t always for the better or worse. We certainly have come a long way since the 1950s, and hopefully have even more of a ways to go.

My teeny-tiny sister pin, 2015