Circus Time: Wrap Up

 "Really, the restriction of your collection to one subject seems to have resulted in the most amazingly unrestricted explorations imaginable!!  It's almost like magic to me, the way one theme expands to touch so many others."  Susan Bensema Young

When Sue said that to me a year and a half ago, I thought it was a really interesting thought. (If you know Sue, then you know she has a lot of really interesting thoughts.)

Sue and me in the tack room of the new barn in September, 2018.

I saved her comment and planned to use it "some day" when I was having trouble finding something to write about or when I was going to have a surgery and would need to prewrite some blog entries for when I was unable to write.

Sultanna, Abby, Diablo, and Sue in the old barn. Peppermint and carrot time!

My spinal fusion in April seemed like a good time to do this. I anticipated maybe 5-7 days of posts and then returning to writing about other things as I healed.

Hah! Talk about an underestimation! I started the series on April 22 and ended today on May 28. And while there were a few non-circus posts mixed in, I ended up writing 9 posts in April and 20 in May for a whopping 29 blog entries about my circus pony collection!

Honestly, I had absolutely no idea I had so many circus ponies and related items in my collection. After writing the Circus Time series, though, my circus collection is much better organized and I know exactly what I have. 

But there are still a few elusive circus ponies that I am actively looking for.

 The Melbaware Circus Horses. (Photo taken from Google Images.)

The Boehm Malvern Circus Horses. (Photo from Google Images.)

The Royal Worcester set that was sculpted by Doris Lindner around 1936. (Photo from Museum of Royal Worcester.)

The Cybis Equestrienne Extraordinaire (Cybis Archives)

and the Cybis Circus Horse Trio "Showtime" - this is the only known photo of the piece and it is believed than only a few pieces were ever produced. Enlarging the photo only makes it even blurrier. (Cybis Archives)

And sometime I'd really like to have the full size china Striking Arabian Circus Horse by Donna Chaney. (Photo from Google Images and attributed to Animal Artistry.)

But it's okay if I never find any of those pieces. I love what I already have in my collection, from the lovely Hagen Renakers to the big clunky Freeman Leidys, the circus dogs and seals, the bridle rosettes, and more.

As Sue so aptly pointed out, the restriction of my collection to one theme led to some really amazing explorations and tangents. I hope you were amazed - I sure was.