6 ANTIQUE VTG 1920 ERZGEBIRGE GERMAN XMAS PUTZ MINIATURES

Description: So, Erzgebirge miniatures from the Ore Mountains area in Germany have been specialties of mine for at least 25 years. I adore them, and collected them for a long time. I sold off my collection, except for a few pieces. Most of the pieces that I am listing are some that I recently purchased, not part of my collection. So why oh why did I buy more? It's a ... sickness, lol. Show me a hand made miniature, and I can't help myself. At the end, after the descriptions and dimensions, I will give a summary of Putz, German Erzgebirge pieces, and a bit more. If it doesn't interest you, stop after the dimensions! I am including a copy of a page of a catalog from 1925, from a German Publisher in Chicago, who sold sets of the Erzgebirge toys and decorations at Christmas. The page shows full sets of items like these. The two little reindeer might be goats. Or reindeer. They could be either! I come down on the side of reindeer, cause I like reindeer! They measure 1 1/16" by 1 1/16". They stand really well. The two little pigs measure 1 1/4" by 3/4". The tree is 2 inches. It's called "Loofah" as that is what the greenery looks and feels like. It has a metal pin through it, that I am not sure what was for. I thought about trying to remove, it, and changed my mind! The wheelbarrow is one of two that I found in amongst some gumball charms. It is so tiny, and really looks good with the Erzgebirge pieces. I am not charging for it, so if you don't want it, feel free to discard it. So, Erzgebirge! It has a long history of families, in a very wooded rural mountainous setting, making all kinds of toys and ornaments. Prior to folk art, the inhabitants were miners, but the Ore ran out (Ore Mountains). They became world famous for their adorable hand made pieces ranging from large and elaborate, to small. If it looks antique, and is marked Germany, it was probably made before 1935. After 1935, Germany was infested with Nazis, and by 1938, Nazis invaded Poland, and started WWII. All toymaking, for the most part, stopped. Items were, for the most part, no longer imported into the US. One exception to this was a set of Walt Disney candy containers, celebrating Snow White, came out in 1937 with the movie - they were made in the Erzgebirge region of Germany. After the end of WWII, items from Germany were marked a variety of ways. the years from 1945 to 1955 were marked as "Occupied". After 1955, they were marked Western Germany. East Germany pieces were being made, but not exported to the West. In Dec, 1989, the Berlin Wall fell, and Germany re-unified. Items again were marked "Germany". So back to my earlier statement, if they look new and are marked "Germany", they were made after 1989. This mostly refers to candy containers, which were made by many of the same families, from the old and antique patterns. How do you tell? Patina. This is the aged look things get over time, and antique pieces will have it. Some of the new pieces have faked patina, but once you hold it in your hands, you can usually tell. There were some really elaborate candy containers from the 1990's, that caused a bit stir, as they were new, and being sold as antique. I haven't seen any of them for years, but I suspect they are still being sold as antique. This is in no way disparaging to the folk artists - they always sold their items marked appropriately. Some of the old patterned newer items sell for more than some of the antique pieces. Ino Schaller is a designer whose items are so special, they always command high prices. I could keep going, but I will stop here. If this interests you, and you want to know more, email me. The tiny folk art farms are usually hand carved and painted. They are still being made, and are still folk art, but usually machine made, then hand painted. You can really tell the difference, when you see them together.

Price: 67.6 USD

Location: New Port Richey, Florida

End Time: 2024-12-15T00:56:40.000Z

Shipping Cost: 0 USD