Antique articulated hand carved figure

Nice patina and all hand carved.  I had to re-string ( hands and feet have screws for attaching ) this and had a chance to see all the workmanship and carving that went into each and every individual piece.  The hands and face are particularly expressive.  The head and neck were carved separately from the torso and then inserted.  Not sure if this was made as a child's toy, artist model, etc.?  9 inches tall. 

Folk art carved articulated figure / jig doll

Nicely complete articulated figure that is 12 inches tall.  Unique form with wooden pegs connecting the joints and hollowed out sides to accommodate the arms.  Has a metal bracket on the top of the head which presumably was to hang the figure to make it dance.

Circa 1860's folk art Spencerian calligraphy angel/cherub in mahogany frame

Nicely executed penmanship signed by O.T. Brown with a variety of polychrome inks.  An internet search of O.T. Brown shows other works by him and states he was a student of Eastman Business College in Poughkeepsie, New York who graduated in 1867. 

Folk art home made child's toy pistol

Recently bought for my collection. Has nice crusty paint and considerable signs of use and play - child size at 6 inches long. The barrel has carving and the whole piece is very rustic. It has a small split on the top of the barrel where there is a hole where a nail would have been placed for a sight. Hard to date but I would guess late 19th / early 20th C.

 

 

Antique folk art carved head / ventriloquist doll head

Just 4.25 inches tall with a freely moving mouth/jaw and lots of remaining paint.  Very expressively carved and painted with a tacked on nose.  Appears to be made of pine.

Antique folk art carved face

Measures 3.5 inches by 2.25 inches.  Hand carved with a prominent nose.  I do not know what the purpose was for carving this unusual carving, but perhaps, given the screw in the back, it was mounted to larger piece?

Prison carved folk art box / stamp box

The box is made from a solid piece of wood that has been hollowed out and the lid is carved with figures that have a naive lack of proportion.  4.5 inches by 2.5 inches by 1.25 inches.  Inside the lid it says, "Made by a prisoner at Joliet Penitentiary."  Inside is a piece of paper that adds it was made before 1900 and was great grandmother's - Mary Gross Obermann.