Not Throwing in the Towel

This pretty pair of bisque vases feature bathing beauties toying with their beach towels. Both are incised underneath with the Carl Schneider "G" pieced by two vertical arrows and "DEP 12223 Germany." Each vase is 7.45 inches high. They are both superbly modeled out of excellent sharp bisque and beautifully decorated. Some collectors refer to these as "spill vases." A "spill" was a thin wood stick, long wood shaving, or tightly rolled bit of paper; before the availability of inexpensive commercial matches, the spill would be used to transfer a flame from the fireplace, such as to light a candle or pipe. Cylindrical spill vases holding the prepared spills were conveniently placed on the fireplace mantel. During the Victorian era, spill vases became ever more decorative and figurative spill vases often are found in pairs. However, by the time these beach belles were produced, the abundance of inexpensive matches had long made spills, and the vases that held them, unnecessary. But the fashion of matching or complementary figural vases to adorn a mantel or shelf continued.