Breyer Race Horse and Boxer Lamps: More From Marks Manufacturing?

Back in 2013, I wrote a post about the earliest lamps featuring Breyer horses, the "scroll base" lamps of the early 1950s. At the time, my mom, sister, and I had acquired an example that still had the manufacturer's name on the underside of the base. They were made by the Marks Manufacturing Company, another local Chicago business that ordered models from Breyer beginning in the 1950s, not unlike Mastercrafters Clock and Radio Company (clocks) and Sears (music boxes, grooming kits, etc).

Over the years, we've accidentally acquired almost a dozen copies of this lamp with all three base colors: 5 on green bases, at least 3 on brown bases, and 2 more on black bases. (Yes, we need to cull a few, haha.) I noticed that some of the horses had holes in the side of their barrels on the back side with evidence of wear around them, as if something had been affixed to the horse. Eventually, we acquired the very hard to find Western Pony version of this lamp, and I finally understood the hole and wear.

As you can see, there is a little metal band screwed into the pony that holds it to the lamp pole, presumably to keep it from wobbling on the base (or to further secure it to the base). We have since acquired several of the Western Horse lamps that also have the little band as well.

Recently, as my sister and I were getting ready for the BreyerFest open show, I was reminded of an unusual feature on another pair of lamps we own. Both of our hard to find Race Horse lamps sport a little band holding them to the lamp post that is identical to the one on our Western Pony lamp.

 

 

And there is yet another lamp to consider in this little mystery series. For quite some time, I had the Boxer lamp pictured below on my eBay watch list. He was pricey and in need of a lot of TLC, but happily, the seller accepted an offer I made, and I was able to add him to my collection. 

As you can see, he is mounted on a base just like the one on the Race Horse lamp, but it's mauve instead of gold. The Boxer is mounted diagonally across the base since he's a bit bigger than the Race Horse, and that's the only way he fits (and barely at that). I was intrigued to see the hole and wear on the backside of the dog just like on the models on the scroll base lamps. He must have had a metal band holding him to the lamp pole once as well. (You have no idea the restraint I'm using not to make jokes about metal bands right now.) 

 

Until now, I'd been clueless about who made the Race Horse lamps, and I could only guess that they dated to the 1950s. Having gathered all of these clues together however, I'm certain that the Race Horse and Boxer lamps were made by the same manufacturer, and while I can't prove it for sure without more evidence, I strongly suspect they were also made by Marks Manufacturing. The little metal bands holding the models to the lamp poles are the primary clue, and while that may not seem like much, I've never seen anything like it on Breyer lamps made by other manufacturers. Also of note is that the rounded embellishments at the base of the lamp poles is consistent on the scroll base, Race Horse, and Boxer lamps which suggests to me that they all came from the same maker. Both our Race Horse lamps and the Boxer lamp have felt covering the bottom of the bases (which are hollow), so if there is something there to identify the manufacturer, it is unfortunately covered. 

Another interesting aspect to consider is that the Boxer and Race Horse models are both very early Breyer releases just like the Western Horse and Western Pony. The former was available in 1950 and the latter probably by the end of 1952. The scroll base lamps were likely made sometime between 1950/1951 and, given the scarcity of the Western Pony lamps, probably not later than 1953. Like the Western Pony, the Boxer was also likely available by late 1952, so it fits the early 1950s time frame. The Race Horse, Breyer's fourth mold, was available by 1954 for sure, but I do wonder if it might have been ready earlier in 1953, perhaps for Christmas orders. 

Whatever the case, the Race Horse and Boxer lamps are both quite scarce. I've seen one or two more Race Horse lamps besides the pair my sister and I own, but I haven't seen another Boxer lamp. I have to assume this means that neither were in production long, and if they are in fact Marks products, my best guess is that they both date to sometime around 1953-1955. I can't prove that Marks made the Race Horse or Boxer lamps nor exactly when they were made, but I feel like I have laid out a reasonable hypothesis.

If you have a Race Horse or Boxer lamp or something else entirely on a metal base with one of those funny little bands attaching the model to the lamp pole, I'd love to know about it!