A couple of years ago (was it 2008?), an unusual pair of figures came up for auction in the UK: a small cat and mouse. How I yearned to own them! I had never seen an early Staffordshire mouse and none had been recorded. But the condition report indicated that the back half of the mouse--the half with the cute twisty tail--was significantly restored. I just didn't want to look at that tail and forever wonder how it really should have looked. I passed. To be honest, I wouldn't have prevailed at auction because the pair went for a lot of money, crossing over the GBP1,000 threshold. Hmm....I was surprised.
Fast forward a while, and I came across a beautiful little pearlware mouse. Perfect, right down to the tip of its tail. Here comes the good part: the owner thought it was a particularly ugly cat and wanted just over $100. I was delighted. For once, things had gone right. I subsequently saw another mouse in the stock of John Howard. A sweet little thing, it jumped quickly off his shelf into the arms of a buyer.
So what happened to the cat-and-mouse pair I passed on? They went into the stock of Sampson Horne and featured in Jonathan Horne's last Exhibition catalogue in 2009. That honor was justified for they are rare little gems. Jonathan knew a rarity when he saw it. Sadly, the pair again came to auction early this year when Sampson Horne's stock was dispersed. This time the condition report was thorough and the mouse had apparently had an even rougher life than I had thought! Didn't stop a buyer paying over GBP2,000 for the pair.
So what happened to my lone mouse? I am pleased to tell you my story had a happy ending. I found the cat that paired with it. Now what are the chances of that happening? Almost zero....which is why I sometimes think there is a Pottery God looking out for us collectors. Here they are.
Fast forward a while, and I came across a beautiful little pearlware mouse. Perfect, right down to the tip of its tail. Here comes the good part: the owner thought it was a particularly ugly cat and wanted just over $100. I was delighted. For once, things had gone right. I subsequently saw another mouse in the stock of John Howard. A sweet little thing, it jumped quickly off his shelf into the arms of a buyer.
So what happened to the cat-and-mouse pair I passed on? They went into the stock of Sampson Horne and featured in Jonathan Horne's last Exhibition catalogue in 2009. That honor was justified for they are rare little gems. Jonathan knew a rarity when he saw it. Sadly, the pair again came to auction early this year when Sampson Horne's stock was dispersed. This time the condition report was thorough and the mouse had apparently had an even rougher life than I had thought! Didn't stop a buyer paying over GBP2,000 for the pair.
So what happened to my lone mouse? I am pleased to tell you my story had a happy ending. I found the cat that paired with it. Now what are the chances of that happening? Almost zero....which is why I sometimes think there is a Pottery God looking out for us collectors. Here they are.
My ruler is nowhere to be found, but each is under 3" long. The bases are formed identically beneath so I am sure they are from the same potbank, and they look as if they were painted at the same time. The mouse sits on a longer base....but how else to accommodate that tail? In fact the mouse's nose actually peeps over the front edge of the base, a sweet touch.
FYI, my cat has been reattached to its base, but I am very tolerant of such repair because all the orginal material is there. The only other issues were base and ear chips. A dog fight? We will never know.
FYI, my cat has been reattached to its base, but I am very tolerant of such repair because all the orginal material is there. The only other issues were base and ear chips. A dog fight? We will never know.
