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.

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Reproduction Warning!

The Victorian Trading Company, which specializes in selling Victorian and Edwardian inspired cards, clothing, and decorative items, is offering the following reproductions of naughties and bathing beauties in its current catalogue.  The reproductions look  to be of good quality and there is no indication where they were made or whether they are marked.

This is a copy of a flipper inspired by the Five Barrison Sisters, a music hall act of the 1890s.  When she is flipped over, her bare bottom is exposed.


This is a copy of the turtle lady from the Germany company of Weiss, Kühnert, and Company.  Her bare buttocks are revealed when the top of the turtle shell is opened. 


This bathing beauty flower frog was originally produced by the Sitendorf Porcelain Factory, although other German companies produced similar items.


3 comments:

  1. Is there a way to tell if its an original? My dad just brought home the turtle lady from my grandfather's house. Grandpa says it's an original but how can we tell for sure? Any idea of the value? Thanks!

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  2. Hi! The repros first started showing up after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, so if your lady predates that, you can be pretty sure she is the real deal. The difference between the orignal and repro turtle ladies are pretty subtle, and I would really have to see a good sharp picture of yours. To make things more confusing, they were first reproduced in Germany and the quality of the bisque and decoration was BETTER than those of the original. Now most of the repros are coming out of Belgium and the quality is WORSE than the original's. On top of that, the turtle lady was a popular naughty novelty, and German (and Japanese) makers produced her in both bisque and china and in a number of variations and sizes. However, if yours resembles the one above, I would value her for insurance at between $125 to $175.

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  3. Hi, I have an original turtle lady as pictured above that i'd like to sell. any suggestions?

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