Antique Farm Animal Original Painting Enormous Pig "Ramsey Perfection" c1840 Signed Spurling

Fine Art : Antique : Primitive Livestock Pig Painting

 

Another treasure from my personal collection I will miss this antique primitive folk art painting when it is sold, I have become rather attached to this wonderful 2nd place pig.

A little history about the subject matter. In England, from the 1700's until 1900 it became very popular and a testament to your skill as a farmer to feed farm yard animals until they became immense.

In theory, it was a practical solution for the amount of meat needed to feed the hungry masses. Such beasts became the farmers, if not the counties, pride and joy and they were entered into competitions.

Many farmers became so attached to their animals that they would have portraits of them painted by traveling/itinerant artists and would hang the picture with pride and bragging rights were guaranteed. Many beasts escaped slaughter because farmers came to love them and some even became celebrities! The "Durham Ox" from England is a fine example.

This is one such painting very much in the style of the English Animal Portrait but I believe it is American in origin. The medium is pastel or charcoal on what looks like handmade very thick cardboard.

The frame is original to the painting and so is the antique glass, when viewed from the side the glass is rippled helping date the piece to the early to mid 19th century (if not earlier).

The size of the picture is a little over 14" by 10" with the frame it measures 18" by 14". It is titled in pencil "Ramsey Perfection 2nd 24799 lbs" and signed "Spurling" by the artist. It is an American portrait as opposed to an English example because of the weight format used.

Condition: When I acquired this picture I originally thought it a print and took it out of the frame to clean it because the inside glass was dusty. I wiped the top left hand corner with a damp cotton ball only to find I had washed off some of the image.

Please refer to the photographs and use the zoom feature, my price reflects this, it is can be restored at a reasonable cost, if I had done so I would be selling it for a lot more. The frame is in poor, aged condition but I like such antique charm so have never had it re-framed. I have replaced the tacks to the back and the hanging wire since the originals were rusted.

Item ID: 632

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