Bill, that is a great Esser piece. I've always appreciated the wet-clay finish of Bottger wares. That dull luster works really well in context of the animal's water-soaked pelt and the waves on the base. Very nice way to close out your collecting year and glad that you can finally add him to your menagerie.
By the way, It seems that your appeal to the postal gods was well received.
The Fed Ex man delivered this beauty to my door yesterday.
This is a Rosenthal piece, dating to the 1950's. It was originally sculpted by Fritz Heidenreich in 1948, and is titled 'Araber' ('Arabian' - though it doesn't really resemble that breed type). It is cast in bisque porcelain with a clear satin glaze. Unlike most horse sculptures produced by Rosenthal, this piece has a raw, artistic look in that the surface detail isn't perfectly smoothed out. Instead, there are many sharply defined sculpting and tool marks still visible. It's a nice size, measuring about 10 inches tall at the eartips.
Apologies for the number of photos, but this piece really needs to be seen from various angles.
Happy holidays and best wishes for successful collecting to all!
T.
