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.

Friday, March 3, 2023

Passing Muster(schutz)

Just 2.5 inches tall, this itty bitty bathing belle adjusts her bonnet to protect her fair complexion from the sun. Her bare feet and legs indicate that she is a little girl, as this was a freedom granted only to young children at the seaside.


Underneath she is stamped "Musterschutz" with a number. Musterschutz is not her maker, but indicates that her design was registered through the German patent system.  First offered in 1876, the party seeking to register a design had to file an application at the patent office and provide a sample (muster), either as an actual object or a picture. Items registered through this system might be marked Geschmacksmusterschutz, Geschmacksmuster, gesetzlich geschützt,  or simply Musterschutz. The number is most likely the registration number.





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