Topic: Hoffmann signed Elephant

[mhgcgolfclub]

I bought a pair of these elephants today signed what looks like Hoffmann, I was not quite sure of the initial to the name which looks like an H, but on close inspection could it be a J for Josef Hoffmann, when I look closely it does look like a J but with the extra loop before Hoffmann, I am sure I saw a Hoffmann Elephant once sell at an auction. The elephant weighs 856 gm amd measures 5.5"  or 14cm in length and 4" or 9 cm in height

Having got the elephants home and had time to look at them I believe they may have been from a pair of bookends ? as they definitely look like they would have fitted into something, maybe the bases  had suffered some damage

many thanks for any help Roy

[Lustrousstone]

There are elephants in the Hoffmann catalogues on http://www.glas-musterbuch.de/ I fell in love with them

[Anne]

H Hoffmnan rather than J Hoffman? H being for Heinrich, as in Heinrich Hoffmann, Gablonsk:
http://www.glas-musterbuch.de/Hoffmann-1927.25.0.html  Bild 43. Item 151 looks a possible match as Christine suggests.

[mhgcgolfclub]

Thank you Christine for that , that would make it a H for Heinrich Hoffmann

Roy

[Lustrousstone]

Does look like they've lost whatever they were sitting on though  :cry: because they have little feet extensions, unlike elephant 151

[mhgcgolfclub]

Yes I agree they should have had some type of base or plinth, which made me think that they may have been book ends, they also have no tusks, although there looks to be no damaged, maybe they had ivory tusks that were attached

Roy

[Anne]

Ahhh I thought the bulges were from the angle of the photo showing the feet behind, as I couldn't imagine that it would be signed then set onto a plinth so the signature would be hidden?

[mhgcgolfclub]

Looking at the catalogue they look like either number 275 on page 38 which are book ends and show the elephants with leg extentions or possibly number 248 on page 43. Either way they were set into a plinth and I had also wondered would the signatures been hidden

[Lustrousstone]

Interesting about the tusks, as all those elephants have tusks, even if you have to look hard to see them. Perhaps a special order. Is there a slot/hole for tusks to fit?

[mhgcgolfclub]

There is just a very slight recess and grove where the tusks would fit, there is no evidence that these had tusks fitted, the area where they would have been fitted are all frosted as made , I would still think that they may have had ivory tusks or similar and they would have had to be lightly glued into place