Misses #413 are an unusual pair of china charmers. Incised "5683 Foreign," this figurine is probably by Hertwig and Company of Germany. The lady in the green beach pajamas has her left hand pierced to hold a paper parasol. Made of good china, the faces are nicely, although simply painted, and the painting on the suits shows the rather hasty application common on these little early novelties. The orange trim is cold painted, not fired in, and does show some minor wear. Cold painting is a decorative technique widely used by German companies in the 1920s and 1930s. Although of average quality, the fact that the figurine is of double bathing belles makes it scarce and desirable.
Unfortunately, while this antique original is hard to find, modern reproductions are not. This couple was first copied by the German Doll Company (GDC), which acquired the original molds. The original GDC reissues carried the company's blue clown mark. However different copies, both in bisque and china, began appearing in Germany, either made from another old mold or from molds taken off of the GDC product. The quality of the slip and decoration of these German copies is far superior to that of the antique item. On the other hand, Mundial Company of Belgium is currently producing a china copy (Ref: HR0251). In the Mundial copy, the workmanship is far inferior to the antique original, and the figurine has been made to look worn and dirty. Mundial does not mark its products and the copies are turning up in antique markets and online auctions, where they may be misrepresented, either innocently or intentionally, as antique or vintage.
No comments:
Post a Comment