This antique painted metal parrot was made to hold a clothes or hat brush, turning an entirely ordinary household tool into something much more interesting. The stiff natural bristles tuck neatly into an opening along the bird’s back, leaving the parrot perched on its wonderfully articulated feet when not in use.

These sorts of figural objects appeared across Continental Europe around the turn of the twentieth century, when manufacturers had a particular talent for disguising everyday necessities as animals, birds and other decorative forms. Austria became especially well known for vividly painted metal birds and animals during this period. This example was previously catalogued as possibly Austrian and painted spelter. It is unsigned, so I would rather leave the maker open than invent a pedigree it does not have.

The best part is the surface. Decades of use have softened the original greens, reds and yellows, with rubbed paint exposing the dark metal underneath. The wear is exactly where you would expect it on an object that was actually handled rather than one that spent a century untouched in a cabinet.

Details
Circa 1900
Continental European, possibly Austrian
Painted metal, previously identified as spelter
Original stiff-bristle clothes or hat brush
Unsigned
Original painted surface with expected age-related wear and losses
Dimensions: 4 7/8" L × 1 7/8" W × 3 1/2" H