Horse Trading: It's true as I live that she gives two buckets Terracotta figure group of 2 Jewish traders selling an old sagging cow
Extent and Medium
overall: Height: 6.875 inches (17.463 cm) | Width: 9.250 inches (23.495 cm) | Depth: 1.750 inches (4.445 cm)
Creator(s)
- Anton Sohn (Artisan)
- Peter Ehrenthal (Compiler)
Biographical History
The Katz Ehrenthal Collection is a collection of more than 900 objects depicting Jews and antisemitic and anti-Jewish propaganda from the medieval to the modern era, in Europe, Russia, and the United States. The collection was amassed by Peter Ehrenthal, a Romanian Holocaust survivor, to document the pervasive history of anti-Jewish hatred in Western art, politics and popular culture. It includes crude folk art as well as pieces created by Europe's finest craftsmen, prints and periodical illustrations, posters, paintings, decorative art, and toys and everyday household items decorated with depictions of stereotypical Jewish figures.
Archival History
The figure group was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2016 by the Katz Family.
Acquisition
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of the Katz Family
Funding Note: The cataloging of this artifact has been supported by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.
Scope and Content
Colorful terracotta figure group, Horse Trading, modelled by Anton Sohn in early 19th century Germany. It is a satirical and vulgar depiction of two Jewish cattle dealers using deceptive word play to sell an old, worn out cow to a German gentleman. Sohn (1769-1841), trained as a church painter, established a workshop in Zizenhausen, Germany, that was celebrated for its exceptionally detailed and elaborate terracotta figurines. His subject matter ranged widely and included genre and satirical groups on popular, topical themes, and religious figurines which were favorites for Christmas displays in homes, as well as businesses. This figure group is one of the more than 900 items in the Katz Ehrenthal Collection of antisemitic artifacts and visual materials.
Conditions Governing Access
No restrictions on access
Conditions Governing Reproduction
No restrictions on use
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Molded, polychrome, painted terracotta figure group of 3 men, 2 Jewish cattle dealers, and a non-Jewish gentleman, a potential client, gathered around a sick looking brown cow. The cow stands with her head hanging down to the left, mouth open, tongue protruding. She has a big eye and 2 short horns, and is very wrinkled, thin, and bony. One dealer stands on her front side and holds her tail up to give an unobstructed, detailed view of her sagging, bloated udder and rear orifices. In his other, left hand he holds a halter. He wears a wrinkled, dark green knee length coat, brown trousers, and a brown stovepipe hat, with a rope over his shoulder. He faces right with a big grin. The other dealer stands, body forward, next to the cow's rear which he points at with his left index finger. He is facing left, talking to and looking imploringly at the third man. His right hand is on his chest as if swearing to the truth of his words. He wears a worn, wrinkled brown coat and trousers, striped vest, and a flat cap, with a walking stick in his left hand. These men are clean shaven with thick sideburns and stereotypical Jewish facial features: hooded eyes under heavy brows, large, pointed red noses, and fleshy red cheeks and lips. On the far right stands a man in a black tricorn hat, blue/gray tailcoat with red piping, breeches, and walking stick, looking intently at the cow's rear. The figurine has a flat, open sliced halfback which is unpainted. The figures stand on an elongated, raised oval platform, with an uneven green top simulating grass, and a paper label adhered to the front side. See 2016.184.602 for another version.
front, base, paper label, black ink : So wahr ich leb sie giebt 2 Kübel voll alle... [It's true as I live that she gives two buckets]
People
- Sohn, Anton, 1769-1841.
Subjects
- Jews in art--Germany--19th century.
- Stereotypes (Social psychology) in art.
- Jewish peddlers--Caricatures and cartoons.
- Jews--Germany--Caricatures and cartoons.
- Antisemitism in art--Germany--History--19th century.
- Jews--Folk art.
Genre
- Decorative Arts
- Object