Bama Planter

 My latest doll purchase comes from an auction in East Rochester, NY.  She arrived safely and is sitting happily among the Armand Marseilles and Heinrich Handwerck dolls.  Only the really experienced and fanatic doll collectors would spot her as a solo representation among the crowd.   But the back of the neck identifies her.   Louis Wolf operated four factories in old Germania: in Thuringia, Barvaria, Sonneberg, and Nurnberg. These beauties were sold in the United States via New York City and Boston importers.   She is about 19 inches tall.  Her hands are complete with no broken fingers.  I did find out that sometimes Wolf used Armand Marseille heads on his dolls.  I plan on leaving her "as is" and let her take her place among the others. She has that look of dignity  that only Victorian dolls can achieve. 

I bought two painting this week at auctions.  Most will understand why I bought this one. It measures 20 x 24 and is framed. I really like the sunrise/sunset and the little men on the water who are supposed to be going eeling.  I think a close up of their boat will show the ell catching equipment.  The entire painting looks so Victorian to me and I think I will love it when it gets here. I paid $123 for it plus shipping.  I think that was cheap for what I am getting.   This second painting....I don't know why I liked this but I do.  It  is Italian, 19th century, a cherub who appears to be floating in the air.    You can see a piece of the canvas is missing, but I can glue a new piece on the back and paint it to match. That's about all the restoration it needs from me.  What I do can be undone later by someone with the skills and knowledge to sew in the linen and properly fix it.  I only paid $70 for this one and I ...

I won two pairs of 19th century Staffordshire dogs today. The above pair are 9 1/2 inches tall and 7 inches wide each.  They are green with gold lusters and have lockets, chains, and collars. They have blue eyes with a pink underglaze.   One can tell the 19th century Staffordshire dogs from the recent ones because they have firing holes instead of casting holes.  Firing holes let the gases out while in the kiln.  Also, the older ones are made in press molds instead of slip molds.  Modern pieces have holes in them about the size of a dime.  Both dogs in modern pieces will be the same height.  Older pieces may have one dog a bit larger than the other.  Finally,  older pieces have some hand painting on the back, while newer pieces have only occasional bits of painting on the back. This pair measures 10 inches tall and about 6 inches wide each.  They also sport lockets, collars, and chains and have separated front l...