$6,000
Sold
sold
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Description
25" (64 cm.) Standing upon a velvet-covered base is a figure of Chinese man with paper mache head,amber-painted complexion,brown glass eyes with leather eyelids that open and close as though blinking,slightly open mouth with painted teeth,black queue,carton torso and legs,wire upper arms and paper mache lower arms,wearing original elaborate silk Chinese costume. When wound,the man turns his head side-to-side,nods,blinks his eyes open and closed moves his right hand in a tapping motion,while his left hand periodically twists back and forth,showing the sign he is holding. Condition: generally excellent,mechanism functions very well. Comments: French,circa 1890,the piece was designed as a window-tapper,designed to be placed in a shop display window,its right hand tapping the window for the attention of passers-by,while the left hand presented a placard for the product being promoted. Value Points: well-preserved and well-functioning,with especially fine sculpting of expressive face.