Tunbridgeware Cotton Reel Holder

This is an exceptional Tunbridgeware piece. It is a cotton reel holder, currently supporting four small cotton reels on a mahogany turned pole with pull button. The uprights are stickware, elaborately turned, supported by the mahogany framed base. The cockerel image is a very rare block with its own geometric border. Animals were never much favoured in Tunbridgeware, this going some way to explain their relative rarity, and were produced in the period 1830 to 1860. The faceted sides to the base are of uniform geometric pattern, and it is all supported by 4 bun feet. The leather base covering is still in place as can be seen in the pictures. There is no similar item in either the Austen or Pinto reference books, another indication of rarity.