Hagen Renaker's New Cartoon Horse

Hagen Renaker has dusted off the old Disney Sampson mold and made a new horse that hobbyists have dubbed, the Cartoon Horse.

 HR Cartoon Horse/Samson, #5103, 3/2019, $40, Heather Wells/The Horse You Want, California

I'll admit that I am a little disappointed - the paint job is not very good on this piece.

 Having said that, I am still happy to have him in my collection.

 Currently I have him lying on his side - those legs are so spindly, I am afraid I will break one.

Mortens Studio Cat

Oscar Mortens, who was originally from Sweden, had an art studio in Chicago from 1931 to the 1950s. (One online source says the company began in the 1940s, but William Thomas, who was friends with Inge Thelin, whose husband, Gunnar, worker for Oscar Mortens, says the company began in 1931. Go here for that information.)

The pieces that were produced were figurines of plaster layered over a metal frame. They were beautiful but not durable - it is very difficult to find a Mortens Studio piece without some damage to its plaster outer coating.

 Last Saturday my daughter and I went antiquing together. She was looking for red transferware and moon and stars glassware while I was looking for horses. (We make a good team - Lisa has found things that I missed and vice versa.)

I spied this small cat sitting on a shelf in a corner. Actually, it was the COLOR of the cat that caught my attention - I have a Mortens Studio collie in the same butterscotch and orange.

I have some Mortens Studio horses and two dogs, but I had never seen a cat before. Still, the color was just like my collie.

A quick search on my phone showed that there are a few Mortens Studio cats, but certainly not as many as there are dogs and horses.

 With very minimal damage to her ears and for only fifty cents, she came home with me.

If I can, I will pull out my Mortens Studio horses and dogs and do a couple of more posts about them tomorrow or Friday. They're interesting pieces to look at and very collectible in their own way.

Stay tuned!

Hagen Renaker Circus Ponies

I added two new Hagen Renaker circus ponies to my collection. I'm super excited to have found them.

Head Up Circus Pony with maroon harness, A-266, $40, 1980 - 1983, Nancy Salander, Columbus OH.

 I'd even call it magenta.

 Here it is compared to the lightest of my head-up ponies - quite a difference. This pony came in a pink and a maroon harness. I am pretty sure these are the pink and purple versions.

 You can see it even better in this photo.

Now it is on the left while the lightest one is on the right. (The lightest one is from Nancy Falzone's collection and has exceptional shading.)

 I also got a head-down pony with yellow harness.

Head Down Circus Pony with yellow harness,  A-267, $40, 1980 - 1983, Nancy Salander, Columbus, OH.

 His shading is pretty unremarkable when you compare him to the one I already have.

I am delighted to add both of these pieces to my collection. I now have eleven Hagen Renakers and eleven of the Hagen Renaker copies. And I'm still looking for more.

B Stamp Pacer

 Despite having collected since 1963, I did not have any B stamp Breyers until very recently. During the brief time (1979-1983 or so) that Breyer was adding the B stamp, I was home full time caring for four little children. With only one income, there was absolutely no money to spend on new models.

 I just added my second B stamp model to my collection - this lovely Pacer with black halter.

B Stamp Pacer with black halter, #46, $20, 1967-1987, 22/2019, eBay, Suzanne Duval, 14425 Dilbeck Rd., Springhill, FL.

The Pacer mold is having a resurgence in popularity due to the 2018 BreyerFest Foiled Again and the 2019 Vintage Club Rockford, so I was a little surprised that I won this auction.

 The B stamp can be found on the inner left hind leg.

The Breyer Molding Company stamp is on the other hind leg.

He is in great shape for his age and, regardless of B stamp or not, is a welcome addition to my Pacer conga. 

Treasure Hunt Lady Phase

I traded my second woodgrain Brahma But to Allison Pareis for this lovely Lady Phase.

Short Tail Treasure Hunt Lady Phase, #1213, 2006, traded for my woodgrain Brahma Bull, Allison Pareis, 3/16/2019.

Isn't she pretty? We traded at Silver Star Classic, I plopped her on the table in a large Appaloosa class, and she took second place and qualified for NAN!

Her name is Winding Georgia after my Grandma Honeywell.