Postcard Image

Postcard Image
As the Victorian era passed into the Edwardian and Roaring Twenties, a market developed for bisque and china bawdy novelties and figurines of women in revealing outfits. Although now most of these figurines seem more coy and cute than ribald and risque, in their time they symbolized the casting off of the perceived restraints of the Victorian era.

These little lovelies included bathing beauties, who came clad in swimsuits of real lace or in stylish painted beach wear, as well as mermaids, harem ladies, and nudies, who were meant to wear nothing more than an engaging smile. Also produced were flippers, innocent appearing figurines who reveal a bawdy secret when flipped over, and squirters, figurines that were meant to squirt water out of an appropriate orifice.

Most were manufactured in Germany from the late 1800s through the 1930s, often showing remarkable artistry and imagination, with Japan entering the market during World War I.

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Bathing Beauty of the Week

I am posting a day early this week, and will be taking a brief break, but will return soon. (I hope with some new lovely little ladies and nubile naughties!)
 Ms. #515 is a rather mysterious maiden.  At first glance, she looks like she was made by Galluba and Hofmann.  The pose matches one produced by this factory, and she wears the molded ballet type bathing slippers often donned by this company's bathing belles.  Her molded bathing suit perfectly copies in bisque the net and silk ribbon bathing suits originally worn by Galluba's bathers.  However, she is not marked and her rather harsh and heavy facial painting do not look like the delicately decorated features of typical Galluba ladies.  Galluba produced mainly luxury items for export, and after WWI, suffered from the poor post-war economy.  By 1930, its workforce had been cut by almost a third and the company went bankrupt in 1937.  Perhaps this little lass is from Galluba's postwar production.  The molded hair and bathing outfit would have certainly cut down on costs and labor.  These possibly later Galluba gals in their molded suits are actually quite scarce.  Of quality bisque and well modeled and finished, she is 5.25 inches long.

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