After picking up a small vintage chalkware item in a secondhand store, I decided to do a quick blog.
If you recall from previous blogs, we did a blog on a chalkware lamp that was positioned for sale in the front of a resell store.
Chalkware is an American term for popular figurines made of plaster of Paris or gypsum, then painted with watercolor paints.
It is very heavy and easy to break or chip. Chalkware lost its popularity when ceramic and plastic alternatives became available in the 1970s.
Vintage Chalkware Horse
Last week, I picked up a small vintage chalkware horse figurine in a secondhand shop. The paint on the horse is chipped off in areas. However, that look means it was well loved.
I’m wondering if this horse could have been part of farm set? Or perhaps, it was “carnival chalk” which was given out as carnival game prizes during the first half of the 20th century. They were later replaced by stuffed animals. Today, if you attend a fair, you will see prizes which are blown up like beach balls.
My chalkware horse figurine was priced at only $2. He’s a lovely looking horse in tall green grass.
Ending Notes on Vintage Chalkware
Readers, I totally forgot about a major piece of chalkware which I looked at every day for many years. That was the chalkware lamp on my work desk.
It was mainly colored in blue and yellow and was of a ship captain or sailor at the wheel of a ship. He is wearing a rain slicker, I believe it was yellow, as he holds on the boat’s steering wheel. The person I shared an office with also had a chalkware lamp on her desk. If I’m not mistaken, it might have been shaped like a rooster.
I wonder about the past history of these two lamps. They were non businesslike in every way and really looked like they belonged in a living room.
Hummm. . . Not sure if I’m posting a photograph of chalkware horse at this time. Let me think about it. But in the meantime, enjoy the chalk art of local children.
Resource Sites – Wikipedia