Here is a small handmade figure by the housewife potter Peggie Foy of West Wickham London. She started her enterprise working from home and had 4 young ladies,including her daughter,modelling and painting these delightfully naive figures.
Peggie developed the narrative and then the modellers got to work. These earthenware figures were fired at a temperture of 1100 degc which took some hours, thereafter the painters started the detailed task of hand painting these models.This was a family affair as her husband conducted the sales aspect of this enterprising business and not all was made available to the local market as more that 80% was for export. Looking at this paper salesman one can see why and just how right she got the person and trade.
The Cape Argus was the most popular edition in the Cape at the time. Later a name change but that did not prove to be popular hence a reverse to the original *Cape Argus* with the paper still publishing today.
Being from South Africa and looking at the figure one can hear the papermans call *latest test score* or simply *Cape Argus* or just *Argus* The clothing certainly depicts the clourful peoples of the Cape with their wonderful sense of humour and friendliness.
In 40 years of trading this is the first piece of Africana i have found depicting the Cape Argus in figure form and it being an export piece. One wonders whether this was a specific order or just off the top of her head. Did she travel to the Cape?
I have found a link that shows her at work. British Pathé news.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cape_Argus
https://www.britishpathe.com/video/festival-pottery
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