Vintage Chalkware Couple Figure, Boy in a Top Hat and Girl in a Bonnet with a Flower Bouquet

This vintage chalkware couple figure shows a boy in a top hat and a girl in a bonnet standing close together on a rectangular base. It is molded plaster (chalkware) painted overall in cream, a soft ivory that has yellowed toward tan, with color accents in green, an olive to mint green; blue, a powder blue; yellow, a pale lemon yellow; red, a bright tomato red on the lips; and black on the brows and lashes. Taller than it is wide, the figure peaks at the boy's top hat.

Front to back: the boy, on the right, wears a very tall top hat with a curled brim, a high collar with a large olive green bow tie, and a coat; his painted face has short black brows, heavy black lashes and small red lips. He holds a round bouquet on his right side, molded with flowers and tinted powder blue and pale yellow. The girl, on the left, leans her head on his shoulder and wraps her arm around his neck. Her deep poke bonnet frames her face and its inner brim is molded with small round flower rosettes, tinted brown. Her full skirt flares out to the left and is crossed by a wide olive green sash, with mint green shading on the skirt. Both figures have short legs and plain shoes. From behind, the boy's coat has long tails, and a tall flat-topped rectangular post rises behind the figures as a support.

The base is stepped and rectangular with rounded corners, and its sides and top are cast with a pebbled, rough texture. A round hole goes into the back of the base under the support post, the kind of opening used for a lamp cord on chalkware lamp bases. Flat and unpainted, the bottom is white plaster. No maker's mark, stamp, sticker or number was found.

On this copy: not measured. The cream paint has yellowed and darkened in the recesses, with grime on the faces and hats and paint loss in spots. Across the bottom runs a hairline crack in the plaster, with drips of cream paint along the edge and a small dark spot at one corner. A short piece of string sits on top of the top hat (seen on 1 copy). No large chips or breaks are visible.

• Type: Chalkware figure, likely a lamp base or mantel figure
• Material: Molded, painted plaster (chalkware)
• Boy: Tall top hat with curled brim, olive green bow tie, tailcoat, holds a bouquet
• Girl: Poke bonnet with molded flower rosettes, arm around his neck, flared skirt with a green sash
• Bouquet: Round, with powder blue and pale yellow flowers
• Colors: Cream (soft yellowed ivory) with green (olive and mint), blue (powder blue), yellow (pale lemon), red (tomato red lips) and black
• Base: Stepped rectangular base with pebbled texture, round hole at the back, tall support post behind
• Marks: No marks seen
• This copy: Not measured; yellowed paint and grime, hairline crack and paint drips on the bottom