Hobo Pair of 2 with the Letter S and Crown above

Hobo Pair of 2 with the Letter S and Crown above:- Greetings. I have looked through this wonderful website to find an a clue to these 2 hobo figurines. The crown with the S below it is visible as seen in the photos. Any information

would be most appreciated!

Mary

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The Forum Help Elf says:-

Normally, the other submission queries we have had on the crown above S mark have been German wares, see:

Gräfenthal, East Germany by Carl Scheidig S pottery mark query

And also this one:-

s beneath crown on bunnykins type figurine

However, on this mark my (elf) senses tell me this is Italian - due to the Capodimonte type sculptural styling of the figures (which is very competent, btw). It must be this Italian factory copied the Germanic crowned S (Silesian) marks for some reason known only to them. Traditions in markings are a funny thing because it was the German (Thuringian) makers who normally copy the crowned N mark of Naples (Capodimonte).

As we keep reminding people here on the pottery marks forum, there is no such factory as Capodimonte nowadays (it finished in the 18th Century) - just an Italian tradition which is referred to a the 'Capodimonte style'.

A little birdie told me (actually Peter) he recently had a similar piece go through his Antique Roadshow appraisal service and here's what the expert said

"There is a tradition of producing sculptural ceramic figures in Italy which goes back to Roman times and many fabulous examples were produced during the Renaissance period. This figure continues in that tradition, however the fact that it is marked Made in Italy makes it a C20th example and it appears to date from the post war period, similar figures can be bought new today."

This one was of a sleeping Shakespearean type character and was marked 'Italy' and did not have the S and crown mark. However, it was unmistakeably the same genre, possibly from the same artist.

Hope this helps,

H.E.