This is a one of a little group of novelty glasses that I am listing. I have had all of these for a very long time - and just found in a box all packed away - so they are completely fresh to the market.
They all date to the 1930s / 1940s at the latest.
This set consists of the five miniature glasses which would have been used to a tiny sip of a liqueur. They take the form of reduced size coupe glasses - that you might use for babycham or the like. The decoration is all hand-painted with enamels.
These are quite rare survivors and perhaps not to everyone's taste today. The subject looks back to 19th century pursuits - that of cock fighting. Cockfighting was banned in England and Wales in 1835 and later in Scotland 1895, way before these glasses were made.
It at first seems a strange subject to put on glasses - but their is a historical precedent with them. The glasses tell the story of a cock fight beginning with the meeting of two birds, the fight, and ending with the victory of the single cock. There is a theory that the term cocktail is linked to spiked or adulterated drinks that were served at these cockfights.
The glasses do not have matching patterns - as they tell the story of the event with different stages of the fight on them.
All the items here are in good vintage condition - there are no damages or chips. All the paintwork to the images is in good condition. They form an interesting and historical little group - they certainly do not make these today. The 1930s ones are now hard to find and my asking price for the little set complete with the beautiful shaker is a fair one. They are being listed at £10 each due to condition and indeed their relative rarity.
I have taken lots of images for your inspection here - please look at all of these carefully as they form part of my description.
Postage will be Royal Mail Tracked Delivery. This will be applied to your order at the checkout.