Circus Time: the Freeman Leidys

 "I am going to miss this cheerful little horse," wrote the seller of my most recent Freeman Leidy circus horse acquisition.  And cheerful they are. Goofy, beribboned, over the top, colorful - there are so many ways to describe the Freeman Leidys!

I found my very first one on Etsy for the bargain price of only $25.

I'd never seen them before and had no idea that that was such a bargain price. I didn't realize, either, how big the Freeman Leidys were, either. They're the size of a large traditional and very heavy. (Fragile, too.)

I took that first one to a gathering of hobbyists at Nancy Falzone's home in the fall of 2018. We were asked to bring some unusual pieces to show everyone.

My sharing table at Nancy's home with the Freeman Leidy on the top left of the table. Left to right are Nancy Kelly, Paul Francis, and Kristina Lucas Francis.

I'd tagged the piece with information that included the $25 that I'd paid for it. JoEllen Arnold thought it was for sale and asked me about it but I wasn't selling. I am a black hole collector when it comes to Freeman Leidy pieces.

At the time, Nancy Kelly was working on her book, Exploring the Model Horse Hobby, and she photographed several pieces, including mine, that were at Nancy's gathering for her book. (Click the link to see more about the book - I highly recommend getting it if you don't already have it.)

Like potato chips, you just can't have one Freeman Leidy. I began doing serious searches for them. Again, Etsy proved to be a good place to look.

I found a set of the purple mane/green ribbon horses, both the head up and the head down. (Despite the seller's outstanding packing, the plume broke off of the head up piece during shipping. Freeman Leidys are very fragile.)

The head down pieces are harder to find. I now have four of the head up in my collection, but only one head down.

The set included the circus wagon. It is HUGE and actually a planter.  I don't have any plants in mine, but I will admit to storing a couple of things in it to save space!

The fourth Freeman Leidy circus pony that I found has a green mane and purple ribbons. It is the reverse coloration of the last two pieces.

By the time I spotted him, I had done a lot of research and thought I knew what colors they came in. Never had I seen any pictures of a green Freeman Leidy. Finding him was proof of what I had begun to suspect - that every color had a reverse counterpart. (I still haven't seen any others like him.) 

The most recent addition to my collection was another head up pony in pink with blue ribbons. It's an upgrade to my first one which has some breakage on its ribbons. I'd planned to sell the first one when this one arrived, but like I said - black hole collector!

Next in the series, I'll show you some interesting things about these pieces and take a closer look at the wagon.

Prepare to be amazed!