One of the things that I like most about Staffordshire figures are their use of "flat art" - oil paintings, prints and illustrations in publications such as the London Illustrated News, etc to depict popular events and personalities. Actresses and actors were always popular subjects with the Staffordshire modellers and they proved to be good commercial ventures and sold well.
This is a Staffordshire figurine which has interesting British Theatrical connections. The inspiration for this figurine has come from the famous painting by William Hogarth (painted in 1745), now in the collection of the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool. The strange orange colours of the tent in the figurine are picked up from those shown in Hogarth's oil. Hogarth was a great friend of the actor.
The figure shows the great Georgian stage actor David Garrick (1717 - 1779) performing in Shakespeare's play "Richard III". Garrick was famous for his energetic portrayals of tragic Shakespearian heroes such as King Lear, Macbeth and Romeo.
The image depicted in my figurine shows an event related to the Battle of Bosworth Field. Here we see the King in his tent the night before the battle. The interior of the tent is lined with a bright orange colour - and has a white peak above the entrance way. The King has just woken from a nightmarish dream in which he has seen the ghosts of the opponents he had previously murdered. He expresses fear and startled concern, one arm is raised in alarm and he has a shocked expression on his face.
I think he might have had more of a fright if he knew his body was going to be found in 2012 buried under a car park in Leicester.
Garrick's body looks slightly awkward but his is because he has been depicted in a 'serpentine' line - a stretched 'S' shape that Hogarth considered distinctly beautiful. He later made this shape the basis of his theoretical treatise 'The Analysis of Beauty' published in 1753.
Who would have thought there was so much to discuss in this little figurine!
My figure is in good condition given it is now over 150 years old. It is a model of interest to collector's of British theatrical memorabilia. It was a very popular figure at the time - and lots of models and variant models made at different periods have survived from the 19th century.
This is not a reproduction - but a late Victorian example. It is on offer here at a fair price and it is has better detail in the modelling than other versions that I have seen.
Dimensions: The height is 8 1/4 inches. The width is 6 inches and the depth is 2 1/2 inches. It is in good condition - there is a firing crack (done in the making) below Richard's leg - and a very fine short hairline to the left hand white section of the peaked tent canopy. This is all taken into account with my priciing.
UK Postage will be £5.50 with Royal Mail Recorded. This will be applied to your order at the checkout.