2011, as Told in 18 Items

If the BBC can summarize all of history in 100 objects, then Vanity Fair can do a year in 18. The magazine offers a collection of iconic objects—some real, some fictional—as a time capsule of sorts for 2011. Among the highlights:

• The Hello Kitty cat holding a “No Nukes” sign, to indicate the Japanese earthquake/Fukushima disaster.
• A pyramid covered in daisies, to mark the Arab Spring.
• A black turtleneck, to celebrate Steve Jobs.

• A psychedelic walker, to honor the first baby-boomers turning 65.
• A mailbox with a rainbow flag, to acknowledge New York as the sixth state to legalize gay marriage.
• Kate Middleton’s face on a 50-pound note, to commemorate the wedding of the year (decade?).
• A copy of Thoreau’s Walden with USB ports, to represent the first year e-books outsold regular ones on Amazon.
• A chalkboard with a sad face, to illustrate the departure of Glenn Beck from Fox News.
• An iPhone with a hot dog (read: “Weiner”) on the screen. No explanation needed.

Click through for the full illustrated list, which includes a pretty intense nod to Casey Anthony. (More Japan earthquake stories.)