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Francesca ... introduction

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  Acorn  
England

this is the same shape of the Francesca and Artone eagle head thimbles

Eagle

  Artone Pottery  
Made in Burslem, England

The backstamp is derived from an artist's palette with the words 'Hand painted Artone - England' across it
The characters aren't always named so we have to go on the accuracy of the likeness for identification! Have I got them right?

  Artone  
The arts

The Beadle from "Oliver Twist"	Clarke Gable	Elvis Presley	Howard Hughes	Humphrey Bogart experimental colour variation
John Wayne colour variation I colour variation II	Mae West	Marilyn Munroe	Sherlock Holmes-with pipe	Sherlock Holmes-with magnifying glass

  Artone  
US

Eagle

Eisenhower

Lincoln

Ronald Reagan

Washington

  Artone  
Clowns

Happy Harry experimental colour variation

Sad Sam experimental colour variation

Smiley Stan experimental colour variation

  Artone  
Artone's mini Toby Jugs

some of Artone's set of mini Toby Jugs - often called thimbles but they are not Artful Dodger - The beadle - Fagin - Gypsy - Mr Pickwick - Tony Weller

  Country Life Design Studio  
England

the shape seems identical to the Victoria China dog thimbles
the handpainting is very fine!
Do you know of any other dog shapes, by this maker?

King Charles Cavalier spaniel

  Croft China  
England
Fine bone china

the thimbles are not named inside

Beefeater or Yeoman of the Guard

Grenadier Guard

Policeman

  Harlequin Design Studio  

Bonnie Prince Charlie and Flora Macdonald

Lord Nelson and Emma Hamilton

Prince Charles and Lady Diana

Robin Hood and Maid Marian

Romeo and Juliet

unknown character unpainted

Other Harlequin thimbles known to have been produced

Charles Wesley Friar Tuck

  Harmer Sculptures  
These thimbles were only produced in the 1980s as Harmer died in the 1980s

  Alice in Wonderland series  

This set are also made in Staffordshire, England and are of bone china.
They tend to be quite tall, with the Carpenter being 45mm.
The chief characters seem to be covered with this set of twelve

Alice	Carpenter	Caterpillar	Cheshire Cat	Dormouse	Hands of Cards
King of Hearts	Mad Hatter	March Hare	Queen of Hearts	Walrus	White Rabbit

  Harmer Sculptures  
Dickens Characters
Hand painted

Being handpainted there are colour variations

Artful Dodger [--Oliver Twist--]	Bill Sykes [--Oliver Twist--]	David Copperfield [--David Copperfield--]	Fagin [--Oliver Twist--] marked "Fagan" on box
Marley's Ghost [--A Christmas Carol--]	Miss Haversham [--Great Expectations--]	Mr Bumble [--Oliver Twist--]	Mr Cheeryble [--Nicholas Nickleby--]
Mr Micawber [--David Copperfield--]	Mr Pickwick [--The Pickwick Papers--]	Oliver Twist [--Oliver Twist--]	Scrooge [--A Christmas Carol--]

  Harmer Sculptures  
Flowers
I first saw these advertised for sale in January 1985
thru The Thimble Collectors' Guild in Scotland

Bluebell

Crocus

Daffodil

Foxglove

Snowdrop

Tulip

  Harmer Sculptures  
Clowns

Like the Francesca thimbles - where the Dickens character moulds were "re-used" and painted as clowns - so Harmer followed and these clowns resemble some of the Harmer Dickensian character thimbles - can you match them?
the makeovers could be L to R - Mr Pickwick | Scrooge | Marley's Ghost | Bill Sykes | Mr Cheeryble
I understand that these thimbles are not marked with the maker's name, nor do they have names

  Harmer Sculptures  
others

Benjamin Franklin hand-painted named on the back of the head

Miner never went into production?

Ronald Reagan only 2 were ever produced this is the matt version

Mrs Santa

Santa

Hound Dog only 1 ever produced no backstamp

The Lion prototype

Healacraft
  Robin Hood series  
English made and bone china

This is probably the complete set of six characters

Tho the characters are not named as such in the thimbles, there are initials that match each character
SN would be for the Sheriff of Nottingham and LJ for Little John etc

W S lettered in brown on the rim indicates the name character name = Will Scarlet
the painter's name is lettered in brown alongside N Higgins

a. Friar Tuck b. Little John c. Robin Hood d. Maid Marian e. Sheriff of Nottingham f. Will Scarlet

Little John painted by N Higgins

Maid Marian painted by N Higgins

Sheriff of Nottingham painted by N Higgins

Will Scarlet painted by N Higgins

Johnson Ceramics
English made and china

These seem to be copies of the Harmer thimbles?

Artful Dodger [--Oliver Twist--]	Bill Sykes [--Oliver Twist--]	Brother Cheeryble [--Nicholas Nickleby--]	David Copperfield [--David Copperfield--]	Marley's Ghost [--A Christmas Carol--]
Miss Haversham [--Great Expectations--]	Mr Bumble [--Oliver Twist--]	Mr Micawber [--David Copperfield--]	Mr Pickwick [--The Pickwick Papers--]	Oliver Twist [--Oliver Twist--]

Scrooge [--A Christmas Carol--]

Snowdrop

Perennis
  The Charles Dickens Character Thimbles  

These Dickens characters were all produced with © 1983 and are English made.
Are these Dickens characters the only ones made by Perennis?
There is one more Perennis Dickens character [30] than Francesca [29]: but there aren't many overlapping characters!
The Perennis thimble boxes do not have their name on, just "Staffordshire", where they were made.
Some confusion is occurring as Perennis released some Dickens characters with the incorrect name inside. Examples are given as a link. Poor quality control!!
There are examples appearing in monochrome - a pale gingery colour. See these by clicking on the link.
Being handpainted thimbles, there are always differences in thimbles from those illustrated: some are excellent - others rather ordinary - it will be worth your while to source the former!!

thimble in box with certificate

thimble in box with certificate

Artful Dodger [--Oliver Twist--] colourway version	Bill Sykes [--Oliver Twist--] monochrome version incorrectly named version this is Fagin	Bob Cratchet [--a Christmas Carol--]	Captain Cuttle [--Dombey and Son--]	David Copperfield [--David Copperfield--]
Fagin [--Oliver Twist--]	Fanny Squeers [--Nicholas Nickleby--]	Inspector Bucket [--Bleak House--] colour variety version	Little Nell [--The Old Curiosity Shop--]	Madam Defarge [--A Tale of Two Cities--]
Marley's Ghost sad face [--A Christmas Carol--] angry face version	Miss Haversham [--Great Expectations--]	Mr Bumble [--Oliver Twist--]	Mr Micawber [--David Copperfield--]	Mr Pickwick [--The Pickwick Papers--]
Mrs Bardello [--The Pickwick Papers--]	Mrs Mantalini [--Nicholas Nickleby--]	Newman Noggs [--Nicholas Nickleby--] incorrectly named version as Newman Moggs!	Oliver Twist [--Oliver Twist--]	Pip [--Great Expectations--]
Quilp [--The Old Curiosity Shop--]	Sairey Gamp [--Martin Chuzzlewit--]	Sally Brass [--The Curiosity Shop--]	Sam Weller [--The Pickwick Papers--]	Scrooge [--A Christmas Carol--]
Silas Wegg [--Our Mutual Friend--]	Sydney Carton [--A Tale of Two Cities--]	Tiny Tim [--A Christmas Carol--] monochrome version	Uriah Heep [--David Copperfield--] colour variety version	Wackford Squeers [--Nicholas Nickleby--] incorrectly named version this is Newman Noggs

  Renaissance  
England
fine bone china

these thimbles each have a small china plinth
showing the character's name with dates on verso
they are also lettered with the name & dates inside the thimbles

Bach	Beethoven 1770-1827 unpainted version	Brahms 1833-1897	Chopin 1810-1849
Grieg 1843-1907	Mozart 1756-1791	Schubert 1797-1828	Tchaikovsky 1840-1893

  Royal Worcester  
England

They are not thimbles at all and only included as a buyer beware
These were offered as thimbles on ebay
They are candle snuffers
this pair are part of a set of 14

Mr Caudle

Mrs Caudle

  Staffordshire Fine Ceramics  
Charles Dickens Collection

a few of these moulds are the same as those from Perennis - using the same thimble boxes?

Charles Dickens

Bill Sykes [--Oliver Twist--]

Bux Fux [--The Pickwick Papers--]

David Copperfield [--David Copperfield--]

Fagin [--Oliver Twist--]

Inspector Bucket [--Bleak House--]

Little Nell [--The Old Curiosity Shop--]	Madame Defarge [--A Tale of Two Cities<--]	Mr Bumble [--Oliver Twist--]	Mr Pickwick [--The Pickwick Papers--]
Oliver Twist [--Oliver Twist--]	Sairey Gamp [--Martin Chuzzlewit--]	Scrooge [--A Christmas Carol--]	Tony Weller [--The Pickwick Papers--]

  Staffordshire Fine Ceramics  
Other Characters

Pope John Paul II

Queen Elizabeth I

William Shakespeare

Winston Churchill

  Sutherland China  

Sutherland China are well-known thimble makers.
This set would be a small part of their production as they are mainly known for their thimble-shaped production.
There are characters duplicated from the Francesca series. When Francesca closed in the late 1980s, Sutherland purchased their moulds
using the following and destroying the rest!
As I understand it, the Sutheralnd character thimbles are unsigned, unlike the Francesca ones? Is this correct?

There are an increasing number of glazed white character heads appearing from Sutherland. Are these seconds or just unpainted stock that is surfacing onto the market? Maybe the Francesca moulds weren't destroyed after all? These Sutherland thimbles are all backstamped with the characters' names inside - maybe this is how Sutherland wanted to sell them - for collectors who preferred the glazed look, without the handpainted detail!

Sutherland named charcter backstamp

It would seem that they never created new character heads of their own! How wrong could I be?
There is a new set that no other manufacturer has had before - the current Royal Family. Some are are painted.

Abraham Lincoln unpainted version	Albert prototype	American bald eagle unpainted version	Anne Hathaway	Artful Dodger [--Oliver Twist--]
Bach unpainted version	Beethoven unpainted version	Charles II unpainted version	Cleopatra	David Copperfield [--David Copperfield--]
Desdemona	Elizabeth I	George Washington unpainted hatted version	George Washington unpainted - unhatted version	Good King Wenceslas unpainted version
Huck Finn unpainted version	Josephine unpainted version	Juliet unpainted version	Lady MacBeth	MacBeth
Mark Antony	Mark Twain unpainted version	Mary Queen of Scots unpainted version	Mr Pickwick [--The Pickwick Papers--] prototype	Mozart unpainted version
Napoleon unpainted version	Nelson unpainted version	Othello	Pope John Paul II unpainted version	Nicholas Nickleby [--Nicholas Nickleby--] prototype
Romeo unpainted version	Schubert unpainted version	Shakespeare	Sherlock Holmes	Sir Francis Drake
Statue of Liberty unpainted - uncrowned version	Theodore Roosevelt unpainted version	Thomas Jefferson unpainted version	Tiny Tim [--A Christmas Carol--]	Tom Sawyer unpainted version

Victoria prototype

Walter Raleigh

  Sutherland China  
Current Royal Family

the Queen Mother is larger than the first four thimbles shown

Prince Charles unpainted version

Princess Diana

Prince Philip

Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother

  Theodore Paul  
Fine English bone china

a few are similar moulds to Staffordshire's

Abraham Lincoln

Elizabeth I

Sherlock Holmes

Queen Victoria

Winston Churchill

Thimble Collectors Society
English made and bone china

similar moulds to those by Harlequin Studio

Lady Hamilton

Lord Nelson

  Tony Wood Studio  

This set of 12 were on offer for sale by The Thimble Guild in 1987 and this was the first time I'd come across them. Now I know they had been around for a while before then, having seen dates inside Tony Wood thimbles since, going back to 1984. They are like Toby jugs in shape, with the opening at the top. As far more of these characters are appearing now, maybe The Thimble Guild only chose to offer for sale a set of 12?
The original toby jugs of the 18th century made by Ralph Wood jnr form the basis for this set of thumbles
Similar designs may be seen under Wood Potters
Tony Wood is the ninth generation direct descendent of Ralph Wood
The thimbles are made of pottery and usually they are unnamed - the names used here, are from the TTG adverts
4950 sets were made and they are handpainted, dated and signed - according to the advertisement

Where I know the initials for each particular thimble, they are included. If anyone knows who the painters are from these initials, please share!
31 painter's initials have been recorded to date =
A B
A W
C A Z
C H
C N
D B
D D
D D H
D D K
DW
H B
J F
J M
J P
J W
J P
K D
K M
L H
L T
M B
M D
M P
P D
R P
S E
S Q
S W
T B
V W
W J

backstamps

The Collier signed W J 87 another painter M D 84 another painter J F 84	Dr Johnson another painter J W 87 another painter M D 87 another painter D B 87	Earl Howe 1st Lord of the Admiralty another painter W J 87 another painter J P 87	Falstaff signed L H 87	The Gamekeeper signed J F 87	The Haymaker signed M D 87 another painter J F 87 another painter V W 87
The Judge signed D D H 87 another painter L H 87 another painter P D 87	The Lover another painter J F 87	The Musician another painter A W 87 another painter J F 87	The Shepherd another painter J F 87 another painter D D K 87	The Shepherdess another painter T B 87 another painter D D 85	The Thin Man signed JW 85 another painter J F 87 another painter J F 88

These 11 Tony Wood thimbles were not part of the set offered for sale by The Thimble Guild in 1987 - but they do correspond to some of the characters made later by the Wood Studio!!

Betsy Toby signed W J 87	The Clerk signed W J 87 another painter J F 87 another painter L H 87	The Gardener? signed J F 87 another painter W J 87	Hearty Goodfellow signed J F 88	Old Age signed J F 87 another painter M D 87 another painter J F 87
Parson signed J F 88 another painter D W 87	Ralph Wood signed J F 87 another painter	Sailor signed M D 84	Squire signed J F 87 another painter L H 94 another painter T B 87	Toby Philpot

unknown character signed J P 87 another painter M D 87

  United Artists  
USA

Distributed by Royal Orleans

Inspector Clouseau © U.A backstamp

Pink Panther

  Victoria China  
Cats

The Victoria China thimbles are also English made and are of bone china.
These ones differ from Francesca thimbles, in that their finish is matt.
The cats often resemble each other in shape, but the colouring is so different that the cats are easily identifiable.

Tabby cat

Black and white cat

Black cat

Blue Persian

Siamese chocolate point

Other cats known to have been produced

White cat Marmalade cat Siamese blue point Siamese seal point White Persian

  Victoria China  
Dogs

This listing is getting more complete, but one rarely sees the full set nowadays

Alsatian

Border Collie

Yorkshire terrier

Black and Red Dachshunds

Staffordshire and Brindle Bull Terriers	Cardigan and Pembroke Corgis	Golden and Black Labradors
Cocker Spaniels	King Charles Cavalier Spaniels	Jack Russell and Fox Terriers

Other dogs known to have been produced

Cairn terrier Doberman - black and tan Doberman - chocolate

  Victoria China  
Owls

The Victoria China owls are immensely popular with owl collectors as their owls are so realistic, using the matt colours found in nature. The thimbles are unnamed with the owl names. It would be a braver person than me to try and name them from the list below!!
If you know which is which, please help!!

Little owl

Barn owl

Snowy owl

Owls known to have been produced

Eagle owl Short-eared owl Tawny owl Tengmalms Owl

  Wood Potters of Burslem  

These were sold by The Thimble Guild, in late 1991-1992.
They are made of pottery and follow the shape of the 18th century Toby Jugs.
Wood Potters of Burslem is a continuation of the line of Wood Family potters.
Similar designs may be seen under Tony Wood.

Betsy Toby

Toby Philpot

The Thimble Guild certificate

  Wood Potters of Burslem  
Miniature Classics

"In the 18th century Ralph Wood created the 'Toby Jug'. From his original designs, twelve miniature pieces have been recreated in the 1992 edition of Traditional Toby Thumbles ........ Wood Potters of Burslem ....... Slipcast and handpainted collectors treasures for you" -- excerpt from The Thimble Guild catalogue

6 painter's initials recorded to date
C G
D B
J F
J W
L H
S H

There is now an extra Wood Character Jug thimble that I can't identify with any of the existing Wood Potters' shapes offered for sale by The Thimble Guild - but it does correspond to a character made earlier by the Tony Wood Studio!!

backstamps

The Clerk another painter J W 92	Collier signed J W 92	Falstaff another painter L H 92	The Gamekeeper another painter C G 92	The Haymaker	Hearty Goodfellow another painter J F 92
The Lover another painter J W 92	Martha Gunn another painter J F 92	The Musician another painter J F 92	Old Age another painter J W 92	Ralph Wood ['Toby Jug' creater] another painter J W 93	Toby Philpot another painter

Other Wood thimbles not in the original set sold by The Thimble Guild in 1991-1992

The Judge signed J W 87

  Wood Potters of Burslem  
Toby Jug Thumble Collection

this set contains = Parson | Collier | Ralph Wood | The Lover | Martha Gunn | Hearty Goodfellow | Squire | Sailor | Thin Man | Shephardess | Toby Philpott
So this is another set with some different Wood Potters characters from the above set/s?

  Wood Potters of Burslem  
Dickens Characters

Selection of most popular and familiar characters
including Uriah Heap, Oliver Twist, Pip and Ebenezer Scrooge

Any questions or comments?
thimbleselect@bigpond.com

Last updated 1 May 2012

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