We like a bit of brass at Kode Store, we have lots of it, and lots of Brasso too. Brass is quite an ancient copper alloy that has been around in various forms since as early as the 5th millennium BC, the modern day brass that we know of today came on to the scene around the 14th century and has had many uses, but the one we are most familiar with is its decorative use.
with Adam and Eve photo by Valerie McGlinchey.
Countries all over the world produce decorative brass ornaments and sculptures which are mostly made using clay moulds or wax castings. But before these ornaments are made they have to be designed by an artist. The artists, sometimes commissioned or employed create the design which is then made into the moulds and becomes the main template for all the copies.
It can be quite a detailed procedure that involves getting the right mix of alloys, which for brass is copper and zinc, it is then heated to melting point in a furnace and poured into the cast where it then cools, the cast or mould is then removed and the ornament will go through some finishing processes like hammering, filing, shaving and polishing, which is done with machines and by hand.
So, while out hunting around for things to add to our collection for sale, I came across this very interesting stylish brass sculpture. I asked the seller if they knew what it was, and they said they did not. So out of curiosity I bought it. Now at first sight you could be forgiven for thinking it might be a Plesiosaurs, problem solved, no, not many people made brass dinosaurs, in fact during my research I found that brass dinosaurs are quite rare, they were made, but they were nowhere near as stylish or as large.
I started researching stylish ornamental birds and more specifically peacocks, which I suspected it might be due to its head crest and fanned tail, and although I did not find the peacock I had bought, I did find something on eBay which was similar and attributed to Dolbi Cashier and had a Dolbi Cashier copyright label (sticker) on it.
Dolbi Cashier was founded in 1978 and was a trade/brand name of Gallery House Inc, Illinois. They specialized in decorative accessories and was owned by Ed Shulman who created design ideas. He oversaw the Gallery House artists work of his creations for a range of high quality and sometimes ‘individual’ pieces of stylish brass art sculptures and other home furnishings, which were then sold on from a showroom inside Merchandise Mart Plaza in Chicago to various high-end department stores and interior designers.
The Sultan of Brunei once visited Merchandise Mart and spent $1.6 million on furnishings for his palace. Wonder if he picked up any Dolbi Cashier.
Dolbi Cashier brass pieces were made in Korea and Italy and labelled with a sticker with the Dolbi Cashier name and date printed on it, which for me is a bit annoying, as stickers tend to peel off or disintegrate over time, but after a lot of research I discovered that Gallery House Inc registered copyrights for a:
- Brass Peacock Design
- Oriental Peacocks
- Art Impressionistic Bird
- Brass Peacock
- Peacock Covered Dish Large
As you can see the peacock featured quite a lot in Gallery House designs and they also registered copyrights for many more including:
- Bird on Branch Design
- Bird Handle Rope Vase By David Karsh Design
- Stretching Swan
- Elephant Head Bookends
- Brass Leaf Vase Large
- Brass Sculptured Dolphin
As mentioned earlier I had found something very similar for sale online at eBay, and by comparing the look and style of this piece of Dolbi Cashier, I believe I have another rare piece, albeit missing its sticker. As you can see in the images below by the similarities of the fanned tail, the curvature of the neck and the shape of the head, the one I have probably come from the same design idea of Ed Shulman.
I have searched for hours online to find another like the one I have for sale here at Kode Store using just about every combination of the kind of terminology that you could possibly think of to describe this gorgeous ornament, in several different languages too (courtesy of Google translate), and I have not found this particular design yet. A bit of a mystery? Well maybe not.
After reading this post Jennifer Carrig who was once employed by Ed Shulman and worked at Merchandise Mart in Chicago kindly contacted me with an explanation. Jennifer has a beautiful Dolbi Cashier vase, a mixture of brass and glass.
Jennifer explained that Ed Shulmans designs would be sent to the craftsmen and prototypes would be made and sent back for inspection. If a prototype was approved they would then go into production and the designs that were not approved would be sold as ‘one offs’ in the showroom. Jennifer’s vase was not approved because of the difficulty of shipping glass and there were only 3 of them ever made, she bought 2 and gave one as a gift which means there is still one out there waiting to be found. Hope it still has its sticker! Other designs featuring lucite, like the thrilling Panther below, came from the idea of the brass and glass pieces.
To be continued………………….
Interested in purchasing Kode Stores unique and very rare stylized quality brass peacock? Just click the link below.
Link: Stylized Brass Peacock Sculpture Dolbi Cashier