As I was wrapping up my work day this afternoon, my friend Sarah texted me this amazing picture from a new Breyer catalog she had just received in the mail. My mouth quite literally fell open when I saw it. We often text back and forth about new models we'd like to see from Breyer, especially Traditional scale models shrunken down to Stablemate scale. And because Breyer has offered mini crystal versions of some models before offering them as minis in plastic, we both agreed that the Proud Arabian Mare (produced in crystal in 2022) had to be in that pipeline somewhere. And apparently she was, but not quite in the way either of us could have predicted!
The Large Zara is of course the model that Breyer copied for their Proud Arabian Mare mold in the late 1950s, leading to a lawsuit and the discontinuation of the PAM until Breyer negotiated a deal with Hagen-Renaker in the early 1970s. I have been slowly writing a post about the relationship between Hagen-Renaker and Breyer, and with that in mind, I photographed a bunch of our Hagen-Renakers and their Breyer counterparts this past July when I was visiting my parents and sister (and the herd). Since Breyer has sprung this amazing model on us, I thought it would be a good time to share photos showing the differences between the Proud Arabian Mare and the Large Zara.
Unlike some of the other models that Breyer copied in the 1950s (Boehm, Rosenthal, etc), the PAM is not an exact copy cast from a Zara. They are subtly different sculptures. The most obvious difference is that Zara's head is turned to the left while the PAM is facing straight ahead. In person, you can see that Zara's whole body has a slight curve to it, making her stance subtly different from the PAM. She is also slightly larger and more refined and detailed than the PAM.
 |
| Note the slight lift to the edge of Zara's mane |
I will continue to dream of the possibility of Traditional scale plastic Large Zaras that I can buy by the dozen to repaint in every color my heart desires (dapple grey! bay sabino! flaxen chestnut! a Trabag portrait!), but in the meantime, I will be looking for all of the copies of mini Zara I can get my hands on. I wonder if my coworkers would mind if I got them Stablemate Club memberships? (Only joking...I think.)
THANK YOU for taking these pictures! It's so helpful to see them side by side.
ReplyDeleteYes, many thanks for sharing these photos! Such a thing is something not many collectors could do. (& I eagerly await your thoughts on the companies' relationship!) And just a tip — you can have as many club memberships as you want as long as they all have different email addresses! 😁
ReplyDeleteThis is so neat, thank you for sharing!! What other Hagen-Renaker models do you think we might see in future? Is there a listing of them anywhere?
ReplyDeleteYou can always check Ed Alcorn's Hagen-Renaker Online Museum. He carries the most variations of all the models H-R ever made. I think he's slowing down now and selling many pieces--but still you should get a rough idea of what was available--in case you ever find other pieces at a flea market or auction. Also Jane Chapman also has a website but I haven't visited it in awhile so I don't know how up to date it is. I think it's under Eagle Ridge Collectibles(or something like that) Hope this helps!
DeleteI can only hope that Lippett will somehow make his gorgeous way into the Breyer line-up, either in Classic or Stablemate scale.
ReplyDeleteHow do I get a mini Zara?
ReplyDeleteJoin the Stablemate Collector's Club!!
DeleteThank you so much for these photos!! This is a fantastic resource. I’m excited to read the post you mentioned about the two companies.
ReplyDeleteThanks for confirming my suspicions. I'm so solidly not a chinahead -- I barely know my HRs -- and yet I could detect something different.
ReplyDeleteI would love to see more H-R molds used like Maverick, the rest of this family, Payday, Comella and her foal, the mule! But in either Trad. or Classic scales (well SM too but I want bigger ones!)
ReplyDeleteWell--Hallelujah!! FINALLY --we get the PAM in miniature!! And a collaboration between HR TN and Breyer is a win-win for those of us who can't afford H-R TN's limited editions!! Let's hope she'll release others as time goes by! Hurray!!
ReplyDeleteI never noticed the difference between the 2 molds before!! Thank you for the reference photos!!
And count me among the ones who will be looking to buy as many of these as I can! (Maybe I can get a repainted one from you Ms. Wellman!!)
Ok Kirsten--because we're getting this new SM--is there any way you will post a link to yours and your sister's Trad. PAM website so we can drool over all the variations that you have of those beauties?? We know you've had to have added more by now!!
ReplyDelete