If you visited the fair during the mid 19th century until the early 20th century you would have probably come home the proud owner of a little ceramic figure now referred to as a ... ...
If you visited the fair during the mid 19th century until the early 20th century you would have probably come home the proud owner of a little ceramic figure now referred to as a 'Victorian Fairing'. They were originally given away to the working classes as prizes at fair and were mostly about 3.5" long and about 2.5" deep and 3" tall, mounted on a rectangular base. They were normally made from white, glazed, soft-paste porcelain and were intended for display on mantelpieces.
The typical subject matter for a Victorian Fairings cover risqué humour to politics; for example marital scenes such as 'married for money', 'Shall we sleep first, or ....'. Victorian Fairings were manufactured from the middle of the 19th century to the outbreak of the first world war.
‘The last to put out the light’ is a common example that you will have no trouble finding. Numerous examples of this figure exist, differences appear in the figure, colours, tablecloth, candle holder, and the arms or legs maybe positioned slightly differently. You will typically find the candle broken off as this was done for good luck.
Fairings can be grouped into a number of key themes, marriage with examples such as ‘Married for money’, ‘Three o’clock in the morning’, ‘When a man’s married his troubles begin’ and ‘Twelve months after marriage’. I doubt its necessary to explain all of these captions as the sentiment is still applicable today, but I do like ‘Returning at one o’clock in the morning’ as it shows a man tripping over a chamber pot in the middle of the night clearly inebriated and being chastised by his wife, a situation I’ve never found myself in!
Although they are often assumed to be British due to the typically English humour they were in fact mainly made in Germany, in particular by a company called Conta & Boehme. Conta & Boehme, Pössneck in Saxony exported in vast quantities to the United Kingdom, USA and other countries. They were established in 1790 and exhibited at a number of key events through the 19th century:
·Melbourne (Australia) exhibition in 1880
·The Great Exhibition in Hyde Park, UK in 1851
To identify Conta & Boehme fairings look for a shield shaped mark that contains a small arm holding a dagger impressed on the base. This mark is usually found with an impressed 4 digit number ranging from the first series 2850 to 2899, and the second series 3301 to the 3380s.
Victorian fairings capture the humour of 19th century Europe whether it is risqué, political or just plain funny. They are an up and coming area for the collector with prices having risen over the last few years as their popularity grows.
