Rare clown mascot comes in ‘old gold’

Car mascots or hood ornaments come in a variety of shapes and sizes that is almost as wide as the supply of motor cars itself. And what a lovely addition to a PreWarCar they can be. No wonder there are collectors for these pieces. One of them contacted us recently about a lovely new find: “As an avid collector of mascots and with some 180 examples in my collection today, I discovered something nice only recently. The clown’s mascot can be seen on the radiator grille of an Opel that dates back to the 1920s, as well as in a 1926 catalogue and last but not least in my cabinet, too!”

That certainly is a very nice ornament. The (Dutch) words from the catalogue translate: “JOKER. Grand model, silver plated, 7.50 guilders” (that’s the top model of the standing clown) and “Deluxe model, old gold with ivory face and hands, 15 guilders” (the one sitting). We expect the ‘old gold’ to be bronze, but it nevertheless must be one particularly rare and sought-after item. We did find a similar mascot with a mandolin playing clown on the worldwide web. But this one is standing and a silver-plated variant. Oh - One clever website managed to translate the 15 guilders to its current buying power and told us this would be 120 Euros today. That would be a steal even today?

Words by Jeroen Booij. Pictures sent in by Piet Geirnaert.

Publié:

lundi décembre 16th, 2019

Tony Pym

18 Décembre 2019, 19:18

This mascot shows Pierrot playing his mandolin to serenade the moon. Pierrot was one of the main characters in the Commedia dell'Arte. He falls hopelessly in love with Columbine but she leaves him for Harlequin. He is a sad clown, not a ‘joker’ (translation above?).

In one story Pierrot dreams of seeing Columbine in the face of the full moon, moonstruck he sings to her, then climbs a ladder to the moon only to find she has gone and the moon is a crescent. When he wakes up Columbine has returned and they gaze at the moon together. There are a number of car mascots showing Pierrot singing, and playing his mandolin, and often the moon is part of the scene.

The characters, Pierrot, Columbine, Harlequin, Pantalone, Pulcinella (who was to become the model for Mr Punch at the seaside puppet shows….and was another mascot design) and others were very popular for more than 250 years. In the ‘Roaring Twenties’ guests dressed as these main players at masked balls and to be attired as the mournful Pierrot, with baggy clothes, pompoms and a frilled neck ruff, at a party was quite commonplace. No wonder then that he would be personified in a car mascot.

The one you show was sold by C. Van Dijk and Co. Rotterdam, Holland (another photo shows their catalogue). It was marketed in the UK by Leo Swain and Co (Leosco mascots), probably others also. The moulds may have been distributed for local production as those in the UK were described as being ‘Made in Britain’. I don’t think the sculptor has ever been named. This Pierrot work can occur cold-painted – I have seen blue and white, red and white – and was made in bronze, brass or spelter. The face and hands usually are of ivorine, an ivory imitation. It must have been popular as the exact same design was used also for bookends and ornaments.

A favourite mascot of mine has Pierrot searching for Columbine. Hand to his forehead, other arm outstretched carrying a lantern to shine his way and this became illuminated when the headlamps were turned on.

I attach a photo of the same mascot design as above, on a 1928 AC Six.

Tony Pym

Rare clown mascot comes in ‘old gold’

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