Online Miniatures Shop

ITEM: 12th scale game keepers shed and parafernalia

This delightful piece was inspired by my Grandad Jim.Although not a game keeper (he was a gardener) he had a keen sense for nature...with a rather no-nonsense approach!The shed is entirely handcrafted and populated by myself.The outside is weathered and worn with moss on the roof and an algaeic tinge to the vertical wooden panels which make up the exterior.The door is fixed in place,as the front opens to access the interior.The sign on the door announces the shed as "Keeper's Rest",it is padlocked and bolted.The interior is furnished with a large assortment of items.To the left is and aged desk and shelf,with worn stool.In the same corner is a little black,pot-bellied stove,whose pipe goes through the roof and can be seen from outside with a little rain cover.An opening leather strapped fishing creel stands under the desk and it's accompanying rod and fly case are by the stove and on the desk respectively.Two shelves at the back hold a variety of items-2 poison bottles,3 traps of varying size,a clear bottle of liquid and 2 pots,an empty wooden box,a basket,pot and bottle and finally 2 rolls of wire.On the floor are 2 old metal containers of seed,a basket and a piece of net.The right hand side has a rusty man-trap,spherical rat trap and an oil lamp all hanging on a line of nails.Next to the door is a rack of pipes and a wedding photograph.Further items on the desk are a functioning pen knife,candle and holder,another oil lamp,a boxed compass (which can be removed),wooden pot with 2 pieces of printed paper and finally in a tiny lidded box,the top removes to reveal the cheekiest,if not the bravest mouse ever!
Although this is being sold as a finished piece I like to think there is enough scope for someone to personalise it further.......perhaps a tea pot,cup and saucer?or a hat?or even a double barrel shot-gun!All the items (except photo's and pipe rack) can be removed to rearrange as you wish.
Width 8 1/2",front height 5 1/2",height at the back 6 1/4" and depth 4 1/4".

Price £450 - plus postage (UK-included in price) (Worldwide £15.00)

thanks for visiting www.debjacksondesigns.com

thanks for visiting www.debjacksondesigns.com

Throughout history, people have been fascinated by miniatures and have made tiny replicas of life-size objects for many different purposes. The ancient Greeks constructed models of temples before building them. Toy-sized guns and armor guided Medieval armament manufacturers. Cabinet makers used miniature furniture as work samples. In the 18th century, dolls meticulously dressed in the latest European fashions were shipped to the New World so that colonial ladies could maintain an up-to-date attire. And today, manufacturers frequently make small-scale prototypes of new products as part of the development process.

Displays of miniatures apparently originated in Germany in the 16th century. The most famous of those early displays were the Nuremberg Kitchens, tiny duplicates of people-sized kitchens frequently given to little girls as "educational toys" of their time.

Wealthy burghers and noblemen of Germany and the Netherlands spent the next couple of centuries displaying miniatures in "art" cabinets, the shelves being divided into "rooms", completely outfitted with furniture and accessories.

But it was Duke Albrecht V of Bavaria who commissioned the first doll house of record- a four-story palace complete with ballroom, chapel and zoo. The finished product, intended as a gift for his daughter, so pleased the Duke, the story goes, that he immediately added it to his art collection.

Since then, doll houses and their furnishings have continued to intrigue both makers and collectors of all ages. Some of the more famous examples include Queen Mary's doll house in England and Colleen Moore's castle located in Chicago's Museum of Industry and Art.

Dollhouses have been a popular toy for several centuries, delighting children of many ages, both girls and boys, in many countries. Before children were ever allowed to play with dollhouses, these small-scale homes were built for adults as decorative collector's items. Antique dollhouses are often on display in museums, but when they are for sale, wealthy collectors will sometimes spend thousands of dollars to bring them home for upkeep and display.
The first known dollhouse was built for a Bavarian Duke, Albert V, in the 16th Century. It became common for wealthy citizens to commission craftsmen to build dollhouses and miniature furniture.

Because many people could not afford intricate dollhouses, a "cupboard dollhouse" became popular. This dollhouse looked like a regular piece of furniture, but once it was opened, tiny rooms with furniture and miniature dolls were featured on display.

With the advent of mass production, dollhouses (often called "baby houses") became much more popular among children in the mid-17th Century. They became common in nurseries as toys and as tools to teach girls about domestic life.

In the early 20th Century, dollhouse makers began constructing dollhouses "to scale." The popular scale at the time was the 1-inch to 1-foot scale. (A perfectly scaled dollhouse was built for Queen Mary in the early 1920s.) In this way, the dollhouse displays began to look more formal and like real miniature rooms. Today, this is an important aspect for the dollhouse collector, as there are several scales to be found.

In more recent years, dollhouses have become extremely popular for children, especially young girls, and are probably still instructional to some extent in the ways of the home. Small children are often given plastic dollhouses that are hard to break, but as they begin to mature, the gift of a lifelike dollhouse can become a prized possession.

Adults are still avid collectors of dollhouses. Some enthusiasts like to build one after another while furnishing them with miniature people and seemingly shrunken household items that have incredible detail. The satisfaction in building and completing intricate, accurately detailed dollhouses can be enormous, and the cost of materials is very fair.

Building dollhouses has become a popular and affordable hobby for the masses, which is quite a change from its humble beginnings, when it was only available to the privileged few. Many of us enjoy collecting, in one sense or another, and upon further inspection, may find a great deal of fascination in the world of dollhouses as well.

©2007debjacksondesigns.com All rights reserved.