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 Recorded Delivery. This will be about £5.50 and applied to your order at the checkout.