Thursday 26 January 2012

Hummel Figurine 171 - The Little Sweeper

This Hummel Figurine is numbered 171, the Little Sweeper. She stands 11.6 cm tall, and has a base 5 cm in diameter; her condition is very good with no chips, or cracking. The figurine could use a bit of a washing, but we prefer to call that patina. This edition has an unusual underside to the base, but still shows the stamped trademark bee flying high in the letter “V” – the Full Bee. Also marked as made in Germany, this figure dates from the early 1950s.
Hummel figurines are based on the drawings of Sister Maria Innocentia Hummel, a famous German Franciscan Sister and artist. Porcelain maker W. Goebel Porzellanfabrik acquired the rights to turn Hummel's popular drawings into figurines, producing the first line in 1935. After the end of World War II, the popularity of the figurines grew as American soldiers stationed in West Germany began sending them home as gifts. A vibrant speculator market developed in the 1970s, and although Hummel figurines skyrocketed in price, today most sell for less than 20% of those heady values.

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