Orangewood Alligator Smoking Pipe With Seated Figure Antique Collectable Florida
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:4276254 | Brand: Unbranded |
| Handmade: Yes | Modified Item: No |
| Color: Multicolor | Country/Region of Manufacture: United States |
Start or add to your memorabilia collection from the Golden Age of Florida tourism when souvenirs were works of art. From 1892-1929 American industrialist Henry Flagler daringly built the Florida East Coast Railway from Jacksonville to Key West and started the age of luxurious Florida tourism. This is a true collector’s item that tells several stories of one of the greatest periods in American history and of a bygone era: proud craftsma...nship; travel adventure by steam locomotive; the opening of a new and exotic, tropical destination within the continental U.S.; extravagant wealth and luxury hotels. Offered is a genuine museum quality folk art artifact from this period, a hand carved orangewood alligator smoking pipe with a seated Negro figure being bitten on the backside by an alligator. While alligator smoking pipes were a common theme in Florida souvenirs of the period, this craftsman embellished his art with anatomical realism and exceptionally fine detail. This is a very rare example of an alligator pipe from this craftsman (who also carved corkscrews) that also includes a seated human figure wearing a spotted jacket, and stripped breeches. The body is carved into the pipe bowl and the head, hands and feet are separately carved (perhaps from ebony wood) and affixed to the body. This rare specimen is engraved with a five point star makers mark, perhaps the sign of a Seminole Indian craftsman. Only a handful of examples of his work with the five point makers mark and included human figures are known to still exist, some in private collections and Florida museums. Dimensions are: 8”x2.5”. The pipe has never been fired/smoked and is without a stem. Museums will be given preference where the bid prices are close.
