Turning a corner inside the auction house, I walked right smack dab into the presence of a black and white menagerie. In front of me were tables lined with figurines of a dog I recognized but couldn’t attach a name to.
Then it came to me: Boston Terriers. (Another auction-goer later mistook them for bulldogs, which some of these closely resembled.)
Someone obviously had a mad passion for them, and collected them in all shapes, sizes, materials and poses. Even with that, they still all looked alike to me because they were all basically the same color. To the collector, though, I’m sure each had its own personality.
“They probably all have their own story,” an auction-house assistant said when I inquired about them.
The figurines came from a million-dollar home, he said, and the owners kept a lot of them, even taking back some Terrier throw pillows that they had originally consigned to sell. Along with the figurines were stuffed Terriers in boxes under the auction-house tables.
The ones on top of the table were made of ceramics, porcelain, chalkware, cast iron, glass. There were coin banks, a lamp, a fancy dresser, doorstops, plates, Uncle Sam and a snow globe. They were all clean, something you don’t normally find in large collections.
Anyone who loved Boston terrier so much to collect so many must have had some live ones, I figured. The assistant recalled seeing at least three in the house.
The Boston Terrier is said to be among the most gentlest of dogs with its tuxedo-like coat that spawned the nickname “American Gentleman.” The breed is one of the few that actually originated in this country – in Boston – bred around 1870 from a dog named Judge, a cross between an English Bulldog and a white English Terrier. Judge’s descendants got the name Boston Terrier in 1889, and in 1893, they were accepted into the American Kennel Club.
They are the official dog of the state of Massachusetts.
They are said to be very intelligent, easy to train and great companions. They also are said to require a lot of attention, are very active, love to play, and unless trained, will jump on you or “nip” you in their play.
Here are other figurines from the collection:
