Please understand that the story I am weaving together in these weekly instalments is highly speculative. There is precious little evidence to go on when trying to attribute erotic porcelain miniatures.
When they come up for sale, erotic miniatures seem to get listed as everything other than what I think they are. Some people think they are one thing, others something else. Clearly their origin is a grey area. I lean towards they’re being Russian as you might already know. Regardless, erotic miniatures don’t appear that often. When you see a good one, you’d best get it. You may never have the opportunity again. The true history of these figures has yet to be written.
This particular miniature erotic figure looks to have been made in the mid nineteenth century. She is dressed for bed in a loose white nightgown like we saw last week. This time with additional nightcap and chamber pot. I have not found any documented versions of this form, Russian or otherwise. As always, research ongoing.
The modelling is good but not up to the standards of a major factory. The area where the genitalia has been painted would be poorly defined if not for the enamel brushstrokes.
The woman was broken off the base some time in the past. There are lines of old glue where she was put back in place. All the original material appears to be there. A good candidate for restoration.
While this example is of the period, there are similar looking figures around that are probably a lot more recent. They are reasonably convincing copies at first glance though the modelling is a bit clumsy. One thing is always the same. The dirt and grime do not look right. It looks like they have been ‘antiqued’. Alarm bells ringing in my head.
I knew this one it was the real thing the moment I saw it. Everything was right. It rang all the right bells and whistles.
7 cm in height
