Marie Antoinette - Florence Ceramics of Pasadena hotsell - Vintage Figurine

Marie Antoinette - Florence Ceramics of Pasadena - Vintage Figurine handpainted and embellished with 22k gold.

She measures 10 inches in height and the bottom of her flowing ball gown with lace petticoat is 7” wide. All fingers on her well-manicured hands with painted fingernails are present. The gold fringe in her hair and along the neck and bodice, the lace petticoat, and Capodimonte-styled flowers in her hair and on her dress are intact. Her delicate facial features and sculpted hair with bow are additional exquisite details. Overall, the figurine is in excellent vintage condition. There are no visible chips, cracks, or repairs. The underside of the base has a piece of felt that is heavily worn. This is consistent with age and related to sitting on a shelf.

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Shipping costs include insurance and multiple layers of packing protection to protect your purchase.

The Pasadena Museum of History notes the history of hotsell Florence Ceramics as follows:

Florence Ceramics was a WWII-era business started by Florence Ward (1898-1991), a wife and mother living in Pasadena, CA. She began taking art classes as a way of coping with the death of one of her sons in 1939. Encouraged by a professor, she began making ceramics out of her garage in 1942. Most of these early “garage” pieces were of children. Initially begun as a hobby, it turned into a business when Florence received a surprising order for eighty-four figurines. Her husband Clifford and oldest son Clifford, Jr. joined the business after they returned to Pasadena following World War II. By 1946, the business outgrew her garage and moved to a facility on the east side of Pasadena. The business moved again in 1949, this time to a modern factory at 74 South San Gabriel Boulevard in Pasadena. The company produced a selection of home products, but is best known for the “Florence Collection”- authentic, detailed reproductions of historical and fictional characters. Florence often produced figurines embellished with slip-coated lace, which burned away during the firing leaving the delicate ceramic replica. Delicately articulated fingers were another defining feature of Florence Ceramics figurines, and twenty-two karat gold accents provided the final touches.