The Hunt for Treasures of Years Gone by

     My husband and I are about as far apart on the spectrum as you can possibly be when it comes to certain things, but it's those other more important things that keep us together and contented most of the time.  Our love of family and our sense of -home- , the land and beauty of nature are on the latter list.  Treasure hunting through antiques stores and old barns and outdoor markets is up there too.

      Along the shoreline not far from our farm and seaside cottage are quite a few treasure troves - two of which we visited yesterday.

    First we browsed the Essex Old Saybrook Antiques Village -

   We didn't find the small black table he was looking for to go in his office, but I did score these Bunnykin bowls -  Vintage 1936, small bowls that were part of a children's mursery dining series by Royal Doulton, England.  I'm a firm believer in using the good china, using the antiques that make their way into This Old House.   One day, when we are hopefully graced with grandchildren,  I'll use these bowls to serve up ice cream or oatmeal or baby food  when they visit.

    I love to search for information on the pieces that catch our eye.   According to Wikipedia - Introduced in 1934, Bunnykins tableware depicted Mr. and Mrs. Bunnykins and other rabbits dressed in human clothing, in colorful rural and small-town English scenes, transfer-printed on white china. The earliest pieces, signed "Barbara Vernon" (Sister Mary Barbara Bailey), are quite rare and highly prized. Bunnykins china was used by  Princess Elizabeth and  Princess Margaret and thus became a popular present given as christening and birthday gifts in middle-class English homes. The chinaware line originated with artwork by Sister Mary Barbara Bailey, the daughter of Cuthbert Bailey, general manager of Doulton during the 1930's.  Unbeknownst to the public, Mary was not a professional illustrator, but a nun in the Augustinian Canonesses of the Lateran. 

     Since we hadn't found what we actually went out for - we drove down the road to the Old Saybrook Antiques Center.

   This antiques center carries some of the very finest pieces, some dating back to the early 1700's.  It's clear the dealers who sell their wares here know the value of what they find - and carefully preserve it.   The details in the woodcarved chairs and desks are amazing - a toddler's 1800's highchair below...

     The photograph below by well known photographer J.A. Beal depicts a scene in 1870's New York City...  If not for the price tag, I would have loved to bring it home.

     This mirror is just stunning in it's detail... 1900's - Gold gilt

pardon the ugg's slip-ons... comfort first :-)

     The bowl below was large and well worn - still in beautiful,  functional condition.  It is described as an Early American lathe turned pine kitchen bowl with original forged iron hanger - circa 1800.

     

   
     This horse caught my eye -  an 1850-1860 era horse that has acquired a leg wound.

If you're a long time reader here you might remember my rocking horse restoration project.   The price tag on the one above means  if I bought it I wouldn't bastardize it with a renovation -  but the one I found a few years ago had already been messed with quite a bit and was a real bargain, so I gave him a facelift.

 The find...

    My finished project....

       I'm not sure how old my horse is.... but he's very similar to the one we saw yesterday - so quite possible he is  an 1800's horse.  I didn't repaint the base, as it looked original.

A few more treasures I would have loved to take home if I won the lottery...

   After browsing this market we still didn't find the piece we were looking for.... but...  I did find an 1800's original pencil sketch of a farm house that reminds me of  Gracie - what I call This Old House because I also call our home Saving Grace, Gracie for short -   with trees and fields and a person with chickens and a dog in the front yard and a horse in the field on the left.  The price was fair and they accepted our offer,  my birthday is around the corner, sort of anyway.... So... I picked up another treasure and we call it the early birthday present. 

 I placed it above the mantel in the keeping room because it reminds me so much of This Old House -  They are about the same age, don't you know.   And although we aren't convinced it belongs in quite that spot - scale and all that - I love it too much to put it anywhere that it won't be seen often.  I imagine A. S. Bailey sitting in a field in front of the house, perhaps under a shade tree - sketching the scene in front of him/her? ..... admiring the shiny coat of the horse grazing in the field, the man tending his flock of chickens, with beloved dog by his side... the charming house in the background - the attention paid to the roof shingles, the fencing...  the chimney at the peak.   Simpler times.... 

  Speaking of which - it's time to go do the not so simple chore of feeding the horses and chickens and tucking them in for the night -  Thank you for tagging along- 

Till soon -