Rare & Unusual Women's Suffrage Hand Painted Velveteen Pin Cushion ca 1880-1900

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Rare & Unusual Women's Suffrage Hand Painted Velveteen Pin Cushion ca 1880-1900

About the Item

RARE & UNUSUAL WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE PIN CUSHION, IN AN ENDEARING, DOLL-LIKE FORM, MADE OF HAND-PAINTED VELVETEEN, ENGLISH, circa 1880-1900 Velveteen pin cushion, in the form of a Suffragette, with facial features, scarf, and clothing, painted in black and wearing an apron with lettering that reads "Votes for Women." This is an extremely rare object, undocumented so far as I am aware. No pin cushions of any sort are illustrated in the two primary references on Suffrage memorabilia. Made ca 1880-1910, it is hand-made, but was very likely produced in a cottage industry setting. Made of hand-painted velveteen and stuffed with wood shavings, the doll-like textile is akin to both velvet fruit of the Victorian era, as well as to Steiff-type manufactured animals that incorporate a pin cushion. In fact, it isn't out of the realm of possibility that this was a German-made form, produced for the English market. Though it is an anti-Suffrage piece, the form is somewhat unexpected. The bespeckled babushka may, in fact, be easily mistaken for a doll by an audience unfamiliar with similar, figural, fabric-covered objects of the late 19th century. I was able to identify just one other pin cushion, in the collection of a British museum, also commercially made, incorrectly identified as an anti-Suffrage voodoo doll. Although the basic concept does bear some unavoidable similarity, early pin cushions came in many forms, most of which were intended to be nice to look at. Here the form may have been meant to "poke fun," no pun intended, at Suffragettes, though this isn't precisely clear, as most British-made Suffrage objects made in opposition to the campaign were horribly grotesque and not reminiscent of a child's toy, like this example. A variety of pin cushions exist that were produced in a negative light. Perhaps the most memorable date to WWII. Made of ceramic and fabric, in the form of Adolf Hitler or Benito Mussolini, these incorporate such slogans as: "stick a pin in the Axis." Others ridiculed politicians in a similarly humorous manner, but the meaning in the case of this toy-like, velveteen figure, object isn't so obvious. While one may argue that the portrayal of an elderly woman, in less-than-elegant attire, sent a negative message to any woman who might its purchase, especially a younger woman, at the same time, the notably kind, maternal expression of the figure would likely been viewed as pleasant by a child--something that definitely cannot be said of anti-suffrage figures, that were almost universally so grotesque as to be best categorized as downright scary. Whatever the case may be in this unusual instance, this very rare object is wonderfully endearing. Condition: The bottom was split open and a small portion of the fill was absent. A wooden wafer was likely once present for the weight and stability. Presuming this supposition was accurate, I made a new wooden insert, compensated for the fill, and affixed a small oval of fabric to the base to keep it contained.

Dimensions:
Height: 2.25 in (5.72 cm)Width: 1.75 in (4.45 cm)Depth: 6 in (15.24 cm)
Materials and Techniques:
Velvet
Place of Origin:
England
Period:
Late 19th Century
Date of Manufacture:
1880-1900
Condition:
See Item Description.
Seller Location:
York County, PA
Reference Number:
Seller: ws-1001stDibs: LU849742228262

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