I couldn't resist this--these--found at an antiques shop in Lancaster County, PA. A collector friend recently showed me an old porcelain condom mold in his collection--of a similar ilk to these, but I think these are pretty decisively bottle nipple molds, to my mind a perfect feminine counterpoint! And to my sensibilities there is a certain surrealist or Louise Bourgeois-esque quality to the whole nest of them--an uncanny sort of outcrop, emphatic assertion of the feminine, and also a sculptural distillation of the push-pull between feeding and sucking! All are held tight in this old octagonal wooden armature/base--original to the bottle nipple factory where they were used I am sure--and notes found taped onto them indicate they were purchased in 1876! I can't find any other example of even one of these molds out there, making this group seem like rare survivors. An excellent found sculpture I'd say.
Overall: 9 5/8" widest x 9 1/4" opposite direction x 5 3/4" t. Molds in excellent, pretty much pristine condition. Wooden armature sturdy and stable and holding them very tightly.
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