Posted 9 years ago
Efesgirl
(1017 items)
This is today's thrift shop find - $4.00. I have searched on Google Images for one like this but have failed to find one. The ones I did find either had 2 Inuits, not enough dogs or not on a wooden base. I think this one is unusual because of the paintwork on the sled and clothing. All the other ones I looked at didn't have any painted areas. The leather straps are original. In excellent condition, overall. Not soapstone, but a casting. It's not resin as described on the internet for Wolf Originals. Looks more like plaster/chalkware. I like it all the same!
Thanks for looking.
Cutie doggies :-)
You have a wide area of collecting interest!
kyra - I wish my house was as wide as my collecting interests, LOL! I live in organized clutter. :-)
Efesgirl, I've never seen anything like this. Incredible bargain. I love it!
Great find Bonny! It appears to have some age on it, any idea when it could have been made?... when I first saw the pics without blowing them up, I thought it was a team of bears. :)
Very Nice!! Yes not true Soapstone -- but some type of Resin imo. I had a couple of these with the stickers on them. Not chalkware, I just referred to them as Resin type, unless yours is different than the ones I had -- but they had the same label.
These always display very Well!!
antiquerose - it's not resin, as far as I can tell. I heated up the tip of a steel needle until I saw smoke (lol) and tried to insert it and nothing at all happened. I need to put some leather preservative on the reins, as I don't want them to disintegrate. Have you ever seen any of these sculptures that were painted? I couldn't find any on Google Images like this one.
Rick55 - Team of bears, lol~! I can understand why you would think that!
I am still researching this one. As of now, I haven't found any like it. The leather is old and looks to be original, and I have to put some leather preservative on it. I can't seem to find any info on when the company was established.
Appear to be soapstone carvings, hardened by a special glaze?:
Wolf, Boma, Thorn, Aardvark, [Pearlite, Jolin], etc. - Manufactured in the style of an Inuit carving, they appear to be made of soapstone, but are, in fact, molded figures. Several companies make handmade figures like this in Canada: Wolf, Boma, Thorn, Aardvark, etc.
From the manufacturer's retail tag:
"Edmund Wolf has studied and sculpted a full range of North American wildlife. Every sculpture is precisely reproduced in a composition of stone and marble and then hand finished, resulting in the handsome figurines known as Wolf Sculptures. Only pieces having the marking 'WE' are original Wolf Sculptures. To maintain the beauty of this stonework (once a year) use a light coat of fine furniture paste wax".
[from the text of an eBay ad for 3 small "Wolf Originals", Aug. 29, 2005, eBay dealer mbMax.] eBay shows many listings for soapstone... Steve. 8/31/05 (more about 'WE' Wolf Originals)
WE Wolf Originals - The Answer - I somehow managed to stumble on your web site and found several requests for information regarding Wolf Originals (WE) carvings. Even though their subject matter often depicts Inuit life and people, they are not produced by Inuits, not hand carved, and not made of soapstone. They are produced by combining pulverized rock dust with a kind of resin which is poured into a mold. They would qualify as souvenir art - very cute, but not authentic. Aside from the WE stamp, there are other characteristics that differentiate them from real Inuit rock carvings. They have a very different look and feel than rock. They are not as heavy for their size, not as cold to the touch, and they have kind of a waxy feel to them. They are also pretty uniform in color (except for the wash that lightens parts of them) and they lack the imperfections, color variations, and occlusions found in most rock. There were a variety of companies that produced these pieces to sell to tourists -- much to the distress of Inuit artists, because they're often misrepresented as "genuine Inuit art." I'd estimate their value between $5 and $25 -- hope this helps. Judy. 4/8/04
@Katherinescollection --Exactly. Good post. I had a few of these years ago thinking they were the real thing too. [ See Post # 5 ]
As you point out, and said better than I could:
""Manufactured in the style of an Inuit carving, they appear to be made of soapstone, but are, in fact, molded figures. Several companies make handmade figures like this in Canada: Wolf, Boma, Thorn, Aardvark, etc. ""
Real soapstone is Cold to touch, like a cold stone would feel. They are signed in to Syllabics to represent a name. Some of the Real ones from Canada have a Paper label ( or hang tag). Here is just a link to an original one that I have:
http://www.collectorsweekly.com/stories/120182-soapstone-seal--1974
For mine above, I did contact the Canadian Government-Inuit department to help with a possible ID of it. The info I posted there is what I found out from them. thanks
antiquerose, I just saw your comment here, because I needed to find this thread for another poster. I'm glad if the info I posted helped! :)