$4,400
Sold
sold
Click image to enlarge
Description
27" (69 cm.) overall. Standing upon a
velvet-covered wooden base is a slender adult
gentleman with paper mache head,brown glass
eyes,painted features,slightly-open
mouth,moustache,brunette human hair,carton torso
and legs,bisque forearms. He is costumed as a
dapper yet"trustworthy" gentleman in woolen vest
and cape,trousers,white shirt,top hat,watch and
fob,black stockings and shoes,and holding a black
ball-tipped stick. In his left hand is a small
metal frame which holds an advertising card
for"pate pectorale" which is deemed certain to
cure whatever ails a woman or child; two
additional cards are presented in a wire frame on
the floor. When wound,the street peddler goes into
his"sales pitch",turning head side to side,waving
his stick,lifting the card held in his hand,while
the card on the floor flips back and forth
revealing a card on either side; music plays.
Condition: generally excellent,music and mechanism
function a bit slowly. Comments: French,circa
1870. Value Points: rare automaton,probably
designed as a store sales-stimulator,with spot-on
depiction of 19th century street vendor of
so-called snake-oil tonic.