Brooding on a Collection: Chickens as Decoration

Hooked rug depicting a black and white hen

September is National Chicken Month!  September is also National Be Kind to Writers and Editors Month, so we’ll see if that gets me anywhere.  It’s also Shameless Promotion Month, so I get a pass for mentioning that.  I don’t make this stuff up, I just write about it.  Anyway, we have plenty of chickens for you to appreciate!

Fenton & Hancock stoneware jug with chicken decoration

There’s actually a lot to appreciate about chickens – even if you don’t eat them.  They’re a portable source of nutritious eggs, they allowed women to achieve financial independence via egg money, they’re good company, and they make great decoration!  Chickens have always been appreciated, and as a result, they show up as decoration on any number of 19th-century objects.  You’ll find chickens as decoration on all sorts of household items, from plates to stoneware to hooked rugs (like the one pictured above).  I especially like this stoneware jug with multiple chickens, and apparently, so do collectors, because it sold for $36,000!  All sorts of things are made in their image, too, including mechanical banks and perfume bottles, but my personal favorite is the carousel chicken.  Who doesn’t want a 2-foot chicken with a leather saddle?!

-Hollie Davis, Senior Editor, p4A.com