{"product_id":"a-late-19th-century-french-carved-and-painted-horse-tricycle-or-cheval-mecanique-circa-1880-1900","title":"A Late 19th Century French Carved and Painted Horse Tricycle or “Cheval Mécanique”, circa 1880–1900","description":"\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eA spirited child’s horse tricycle of the type the French called the \u003cem\u003echeval mécanique\u003c\/em\u003e, or mechanical horse. This is the toy on which Claude Monet painted his small son Jean in 1872, and which delighted nurseries on both sides of the Channel through the closing decades of the century. The horse is caught at full stretch, forelegs flung out before him as if clearing a fence. His body is carved from softwood and painted a soft cream. The head and neck are cast iron, made in two halves joined down the line of the face. They are modelled with pricked ears, flared nostrils and an open mouth, and touched with red to the ears and nostrils. Brass rosettes and remnants of the original bridle survive at the cheek, and a horsehair tail streams from the quarters.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThe mechanism is ingenious and characteristic. A wrought-iron shaft passes through the horse’s head with a crank to either side, one still retaining its turned wooden grip. Turning the cranks drives a chain that runs back through the neck and body to a sprocket on the rear axle. Meanwhile, the young rider’s feet rest on pedals on the front fork, steering the front wheel. The rear axle can be used as a footrest. The rear frame is a handsome pierced cast-iron bracket of scrolling foliage and rosettes, carrying the axle between two large spoked iron wheels.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eRide-on toys of this kind were costly playthings, sold through the great Parisian department stores. They were made for comfortable middle-class nurseries, and they were ridden hard. This example wears its history openly, in rusted iron, crazed and flaking paint, and the scuffs of countless childhood journeys. It now makes an irresistibly characterful display piece for a nursery or playroom, a hallway, or a collection of early toys.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eProvenance:\u003c\/strong\u003e France, late 19th Century.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMaterial:\u003c\/strong\u003e Carved and painted softwood (probably pine), cast and wrought iron, steel chain, turned wooden grip, and horsehair.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCondition:\u003c\/strong\u003e Displayed as found and offered as a decorative object; it is not intended for riding.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eHead:\u003c\/strong\u003e heavy surface rust on the cast-iron head and neck, with extensive paint loss. Both glass eyes are missing, leaving empty sockets, and only remnants of the bridle survive.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCranks:\u003c\/strong\u003e one crank has lost its wooden grip.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBody:\u003c\/strong\u003e the carved body shows shrinkage splits along its constructional joints and widespread paint loss revealing the wood and earlier ground. There are old fixing holes to the back, probably from a now-missing saddle.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eShoulder:\u003c\/strong\u003e a break with losses to the wood around the iron collar bracket.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMetalwork:\u003c\/strong\u003e rust throughout the wheels and frame. Some nuts may be later replacements.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eTail:\u003c\/strong\u003e thinned.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eGeneral:\u003c\/strong\u003e wear commensurate with age and use.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 29 in long x 28 in high x 18½ in wide (74 cm x 71 cm x 47 cm). Length is taken from the front of the front wheel to the back of the rear wheels, height to the tips of the ears, and width across the rear axle. \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Holt Antiques at East Raynham","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56508373827926,"sku":"HAF7548","price":995.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0782\/7462\/5878\/files\/70600.png?v=1794068130","url":"https:\/\/holtantiquefurniture.com\/products\/a-late-19th-century-french-carved-and-painted-horse-tricycle-or-cheval-mecanique-circa-1880-1900","provider":"Holt Antiques at East Raynham","version":"1.0","type":"link"}