German Sycamore Polychrome Whistling Tramp By Karl Griesbaum

  
German Sycamore Polychrome Whistling Tramp By Karl Griesbaum. This is a fantastic example of a whistling figurine from the early 1900's by Karl Griesbaum, manufacturers of affordable clockwork automatons.

The figure is a happy go lucky, downtrodden character in an oversized jacket, spotted scarf and bowler hat, he is roughly hewn in a style not quite identifiable amongst other examples online. The mechanism however is by Griesbaums company and is stamped GERMANY.

The figure's head is actuated and turns from left to right, while inside, small bellows are powered by the spring to pipe air through a small swanny whistle that changes notes as the cogs pull or plunge the inner valve. The mechanism is dust-protected by the original removable wooden panel, and comes with a winding key.

Its a charming piece and quite collectable. The figure stands 13.5 inches (34.5 cm) tall, and stands on a base 4 (10 cm) inches across and 3 (7.5 cm) inches deep. The piece is in good condition, the polychrome varnishes and polkadotted paint all retain good lustre.

The mechanism works very well , though perhaps one or two notes are unreachable by the whistle now. There has been a repair to the mechanism in recent years, revealed by two fresh springs and a dab of professionally applied (but modern) solder. The key parts of the mechanism are the original brass castings however and are a treat to watch in motion. For further details and condition see pictures.

The item "German Sycamore Polychrome Whistling Tramp By Karl Griesbaum" is in sale since Monday, October 1, 2018. This item is in the category "Collectables\Household Collectables\Music Boxes". The seller is "theantiquesstorehouse" and is located in Portsmouth. This item can be shipped worldwide.

• Material: Wood
• Theme: Characters
• Country/Region of Manufacture: Germany
• Style: Black Forest