This is a fine pair of antique late Victorian Staffordshire dogs. They take the form of a pair of seated chimney spaniels. They are genuine Victorian examples, and definitely not modern reproductions.
They are nicely modelled examples with no chips or cracks. They have their original brown glass eyes, as photographed. They are a matched pair, as created. They have black painted muzzles surrounded by an ochre yellow band. Each dog also has a prominent red down-turned mouth, as photographed.
Each dog has a little gold-coloured collar with a padlock on it. The padlock and chain on each dog have a little rubbing and a wee bit of losses to the gilding - but this is common with constant handling on older models. This pair still has a lot of decorative gilding on their body sections. Often, a lot of this gilding has been rubbed over over the decades. My pair has lots of gold feathering patterns all over to suggest the curls of the spaniels fur. Not only does the gilding suggest the texture of the fur but there is some raised modelling also suggests a wavy coat.
There are air holes in the back of each dog, as photographed. Each dog has been made from two mould sections which have been joined by a seam to form the whole model. You can see the old seams around the centre of the dogs and as found on older examples taken from a mould and not slip-cast. The dogs have conjoined but nicely modelled forepaws. I love the dogs' curly tails. They are certainly a fine late 19th century pair of chimney spaniels.
This pair has a nice overall gloss to the glaze. There are no nasty chips or cracks. There is some (expected) craquleure on the shiny glaze. I have taken close ups of this to show you the glaze crazing. This is very subtle and not obvious unless on close up inspection.
They are fine display pieces - and will look fabulous on a mantlepiece or old-fashioned kitchen dresser. They are a good size for a modern domestic interior.
Height: 11 1/4 inches. Width: 10 1/2 inches and the depth (at the widest) is 3 1/2 inches. They are sturdy dogs and weight 1.6 kg for each dog.
They will be carefully packed and sent to you with Royal Mail Tracked (Medium Parcel). This will be applied to your order at the checkout.