HISTORY:
Oh My! While my wife has been handing me a LOT of her treasured English chinaware (that needs to live in a new home due to "downsizing" space issues) and some porcelain figurines which she has decided to slowly find new homes for ... this is nice little figurine from East Germany which needs to find a new home (the famous ballerinas are staying here for the moment!)
These East German "porcelain wares" date from the days of "Germany of old" when Germany was split into East and West, these being made in the East. Very high quality worksmanship and world reknown porcelain figurines, those with the "Dresden lace" being the most superb - she is also slowly "releasing" them over time.
What's it all about (Alfie)? to borrow a line from a very old song
This is not just a pretty little figurine, it is telling you a story ... as is often the case with these figurines, they portray people from the 19th Century but not just ordinary people, usually those from the "upper classes", the well-to-do's
This young lady is well dressed but she is not in the uppermost echelons of the household, she is acting as a cavalier (Rosenkavalier) on a mission. Her mission is to take a Red rose to a young lady in the household on behalf of a gentleman suitor. The rose symbolises love, betrothal, and the social formalities of marriage. This ritual was part of the marriage betrothal process in high society. It would have been seen as far too aggressive if the gentleman made a move directly himself, so he engages the services of an intermediary, this young lady.
Often there are other porcelain pieces (much larger) which show the "lady of interest" dressed in very ornate lace formal dresses (Dresden lace) and actually being presented the rose by a cavalier and my wife said she once saw a piece that also had the gentleman in the scene as well, all three together.
This piece is not highly coloured, being primarily the base White with plenty of Colbalt Blue adorned with Gold gilding. Of course the rose is coloured as are the ladies cheeks and arms, to give a more flesh-like appearance.
All of the craftsmanship has been undertaken by a human, this is hand crafted work.
Enough of the introductions .... now it's down to brass tacks
UNTER WEISS BACH (EAST GERMANY) - Porcelain Hand Decorated Figurine
Produced in East Germany
Circa anywhere between 1958 & 1976 period. My wife acquired this piece in the early 1980's from an estate sale.
White hard paste porcelain base material
Hand decorated
Gold gilding is used
The lady is small(ish) as she stands at 145mm (almost 6 inches) tall
At the base, the widest point is just 55mm across or just over 2 inches. Although small, the base is stable and the lady does not tend to "kiss the display cabinet shelf!" - meaning, falling over.
Weight of the figurine is just 123g
The backstamp is easily verifiable as belonging to the period 1958 ~ 1976 and although it is extremely small and difficult to view, the tiny VEB is also there.
Here is a photograph of the backstamp
SPECIAL NOTE: Its a funny thing about this porcelain ... the photographs often had a Bluish tinge and the backstamp above is in reality BLACK not Blue. It's something about the porcelain and the differences between what the camera "sees" and what I see in real life. Also that pattern number stamped into the porcelain is barely readable using naked light but "shines" when viewed under UV light - weird!
CONDITION:
It's all very well having a lovely piece of porcelain but is it in good condition? While looking around online I saw people offering these (at relatively high prices) with broken fingers! Goodness me.
This figurine has NO flaws in either the porcelain or the decorative work.
Her facial features look quite natural, skin tones look right and those long fingers have not been broken! The Red rose has all the petals intact.
There are NO chips or scratching anywhere.
NO crazing is evident at all
The decoration is consistent, undamaged nor is it discoloured in any way.
Since I have now completed taking a few photographs and describing this figurine, it has now been safely "tucked into bed" surrounded by bubble-wrap and within a very strong 3 wall outer cardboard box - ready to take her trip to a new home.
