A Truly Wonderful Early 20th Century Ventriloquist's Clown Dummy c.1920
SOLD
Origin: English
Period: Early 20th Century
Provenance: Unknown
Date: c.1920
Height: 35.5 inches
Of the highest build quality, the head and body constructed of a combination of paper maché, and plaster composition parts and lower limbs with fabric attachments, the painted face with glass eyes & applied wig, dressed in a white jumpsuit with red & black polka dot style decoration, the internal mechanism operating rising hair, moving eyes, snarling lip & mouth.
The costume for the dummy is of the highest tailored quality, and in excellent condition. Pennywise (for that is his name) only has one of his polka dots missing, his hands and feet are in worn but good order and the dummy is totally and utterly original. There are four actions for the dummy operated by metal levers, all fully functional aside from the eyes currently.
The uncanny nature of ventriloquist’s dummies has enthralled and spooked people for decades, and they continue to feature in horror films to this day. The idea of the ghost in the inanimate object is not a new one, Freud has written at length on the subject in his discussions on the uncanny, and ghost stories have featured dolls and portraits coming to life for centuries.
Pennywise is simply one of the rarest and most spectacular original antique dummies you are ever likely to see. Now, to start clowning around.