Ship’s Figurehead

Artisan: Nantasy Fantasy
Date: Unknown
Inscriptions: signed ‘NF’ (on the back)
Dimensions: 68 x 32 x 33 mm. / 2 ⅝ x 1 ¼ x 1 ¼ inches (height x width x depth)
Inventory number: 2022.171
Intended Room: Museum
Category: Objets d’Art

Provenance: Purchased from Judy Taylor at Kensington Dolls House Festival, May 2022, where she was selling off stock from her old shop, Taylors Miniatures, in Goring-on-Thames. Judy bought the piece directly from Nantasy Fantasy at a fair in the USA some years ago.

Whether it be whimsy or genius, the people behind Nantasy Fantasy have come up with some of the most original miniatures on the market. Who else has thought to make a ship’s figurehead, for example? I’d seen a couple of examples of these figureheads for sale online, and couldn’t believe my eyes when I spotted this one among Judy Taylor’s offerings at Kensington Dolls House Festival in May 2022. Reader, I pounced. She’s exquisite and, even better, she has a little hole in the back so you can hang her on a nail – I’d already decided that I wanted at least one figurehead to hang in the Museum, as part of our kunstkammer. I think she’ll look rather fine alongside our lusterweibchen chandelier and our santos cage doll.

Although I usually try to photograph our miniatures against a white background in a lightbox, that didn’t work for our figurehead, as I wanted to find a way to have her on a wall, as she’s designed to be. A few bits of Tacky Wax later, and she was proudly attached to one of the drop leaves of our table. The result gives a good idea of what she should look like – but it means that she has a rather creamy background in some photos. Never mind. I think we’ve managed to capture her wonderful charisma.