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Antique and vintage items make nicer than new gifts THE ITEM If you visited a fair during the mid-19th and early-20th Centuries you would probably have come home with a prize or cheap souvenir...a small china figurine now referred to by enthusiastic collectors as a 'Fairing'. Listed is a much-collected Fairing with its cute cats and kittens gathered around a teapot and cups. One of the best known producers was the German pottery, Conta and Boehme, who are associated with this Fairing, but there are no markings on the base to confirm it. We are, however, confident that its roots are German and the absence of any reference to source suggests it was Mid-Victorian and certainly pre-1890. Authentic pieces from this period were also moulded in two pieces and there is evidence of the join on each side of the figurine, Although the cartoon-like humour is often quintessentially British, the main production of Fairings was in Germany. The advanced German potteries could produce small, coloured and gilded pieces cheaply for the mass market. The Fairings were made in a white soft-paste porcelain, assembled from several moulds. and subsequently hand-painted. The light-hearted subject matter of the Fairings was influenced by English ideas such as the UK's affection for animals and particularly cats and kittens. CONDITION Very good...no chips or cracks or any other damage and the colours have held up quite well over 150 years or so, including the gilded detailing (please see the images). PRICING Whenever possible our asking prices are based on either our knowledge of the genre or on what similar pieces have been sold for on the international market, rather than what some sellers are asking, which are usually two very different things! You will normally find that our prices sit somewhere in the middle between auction and professional dealer prices and we are always willing to consider realistic offers. SHIPPING We have a 100pc success rate for over a decade of successfully shipping fragile glassware and ceramics across the UK and the wider World. We only charge what the Post Office and couriers charge us. International shipping? Since Covid, we have started to use eBay's Global Shipping Programme for packages over 2kg because it has proved to be competitive and reliable. However, this item is light enough for us to use the Royal Mail's airmail service. The likely shipping charge quoted is the maximum amount that it will cost in Europe, North America and Australia and may be less. Please ask us about this before buying. WE ALWAYS TRY TO HAVE AN INTERESTING RANGE OF ANTIQUES AND COLLECTIBLES IN OUR EBAY STORE AT... https://www.ebay.co.uk/str/collectorlink11 WE'D LOVE YOU TO VISIT US...YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT YOU MIGHT FIND