Blue Ribbon - in the style of Stein & Goldstein. This is my own horse, which I bought in Florida in 1988. It was made by: PJ's Carousels in Newbern - Virginia
The original masterpiece created circa
1914 can be found at Bushnell Park, Hartford CT.
Many carousel craftsmen used other 'menagerie' animals on their carousels but Stein & Goldstein specialised in very large horses with wild, almost demented demeanors! They are my favourite because if they came to life - what a handful they would be!!
Other master carvers like Looff, Illions, Muller and Dentzel to name just a few all had their own trademark styles that delight and enchant people of all ages. It seems that when it comes to carousels many of us are frozen in time to being children forever.
The original carousel carvings are now valuable collectors' items which often means that whole carousels are broken up - forever lost to future generations of children to enjoy. Fortunately there are some wonderful reproduction animals to be found - varying in size and price. This includes lions, tigers, cats, hippocampus and many others.
Each master carver had his own style - you will soon discover what your favourite style is. For some it is the flying gold manes of ILLIONS or the ornately bejewelled LOOFF horses. Maybe the mightily impressive armoured horses of MULLER will fire your imagination or perhaps the incredibly stylish equines by DENTZEL will capture your emotions!
