Absolute Darling Antique Flat Headed Staffordshire Dalmatian with a Very Crooked Smile

THE STORY - As the title suggests this early Staffordshire Dalmatian is not perfect in form, the top of his head is very flat, almost making me wonder if a shelf fell upon it whilst it was drying in the pottery and his smile, well that really is only on one side of his face, so it really is very crooked, maybe the hand who painted it was distracted, but it is these defects that for me mark this guy out from the rest and make him pretty special. After all in todays world of uniformity he would be thrown out immediately, but he was not and not only was he not thrown out he has been cherished and loved for over 150 years. But there are also aspects to this dalmatian that are not defects that make him even more admirable. The figurine is I believe an early Staffordshire piece dating to circa 1850 and he sits upright on an oval base which has on the rim and edge of green grass coloured paint. His tail and his claws of his paws are highlighted with the same black paint as well as the collar he wears around his neck, but it is the painting of his spots with is so lovely with lines on large spots interspersed with a line of much smaller ones and for me it makes those spots pop out, they almost appear to be dancing. Who knows maybe it was the massive amount of concentration needed to paint those spots that led the painter being easily distracted as they finished off this dear Dalmatian's mouth.

AGE - Circa 1850

CONDITION - Well apart from the obvious which I have spoken about above, this chap is in pretty condition. There are no chips or cracks that I can see. There is wear to the glaze at the very back of his head which can best be seen in the sixth photo and also to the tip of his nose best seen in the third photo. And well I can only describe his back as 'messy with what looks like remnants of that black paint, this again is best seen in the sixth photo.

DIMENSIONS (Approx) - Height 4&1/2" / 11.5cm, Width 2&1/4" / 6cm, Depth 1&3/4" / 4.5cm

Imperfect but much loved (and I include myself in that) that is certain, but I find myself wondering how this little guy with all his faults which are obvious came from the pottery to his first home. Could it have been that the person that first owned this little guy was the person who painted it, possibly a child, possibly it was an apprentice piece, and if that was the case for how many generations was this known? This of course is pure speculation on my behalf, but that is what I find so beautiful about antiques, they are more than just their form, they are also their history, and they have the ability to spark the imagination. I think you can guess this little guy has done just that with me. And I adore each and every one of his or hers imperfections.