Staffordshire figure, "Uncle Tom", depicting Uncle Tom standing in striped trousers and low cut shirt with gilt collar, his right hand on a book which is on a package, his hat at his right foot. Titled on the base in gilt script.
Harriet Beecher Stowe's "Uncle Tom's Cabin" was first published as a serial in the abolitionist newspaper, "The National Era" and in book form in 1852. It sold nearly a half million copies in the United States and almost as many in England, inspiring at least 15 Staffordshire figures. This small, dignified model is among the rarest of the group.[1]
[1] P. D. Gordon Pugh, "Staffordshire Portrait Figures and Allied Subjects of the Victorian Era" (Woodbridge, Suffolk: Antique Collectors' Club Ltd., 1992) 204-209.
England c. 1852
2.75" x 2.25" x 8.75" high
SOLD
Condition: Excellent condition- no chips, cracks or repairs. Glaze crackle as expected.