A Staffordshire model of Chang and Eng Bunker the Chinese Siamese Twins below an arbour, circa 1860, (arbour re-stuck), 29cm high Chang and Eng Bunker, conjoined twins from Siam (now Thailand), came to the U.S. in 1829 and toured the nation and the world over the next four decades. Born in 1811 of Chinese parents, the twins were successful entrepreneurs in Siam before the Scottish merchant Robert Hunter took them on a world tour. The figure is a slight curiosity; though definitively described as being the Bunker twins, the figures in this group are almost certainly female when the twins were most definitely male! The figure clad in what appears to be tartan is also holding some form of instrument, which is more suggestive of a circus than a 'freak show' environment. Not only this, but on their tours the twins were dressed in simple loin cloths so as to 'show off' their deformities, so to see them fully dressed in female clothing would be quite an anomaly. A 'blackface' version of this figure also exists which further adds to confusion. Literature: Illustrated in Gordon Pugh's Staffordshire Portrait Figures in Fig. 58.
A Staffordshire model of Chang and Eng Bunker the Chinese Siamese Twins below an arbour, circa 1860, (arbour re-stuck), 29cm high Chang and Eng Bunker, conjoined twins from Siam (now Thailand), came to the U.S. in 1829 and toured the nation and the world over the next four decades. Born in 1811 of Chinese parents, the twins were successful entrepreneurs in Siam before the Scottish merchant Robert Hunter took them on a world tour. The figure is a slight curiosity; though definitively described as being the Bunker twins, the figures in this group are almost certainly female when the twins were most definitely male! The figure clad in what appears to be tartan is also holding some form of instrument, which is more suggestive of a circus than a 'freak show' environment. Not only this, but on their tours the twins were dressed in simple loin cloths so as to 'show off' their deformities, so to see them fully dressed in female clothing would be quite an anomaly. A 'blackface' version of this figure also exists which further adds to confusion. Literature: Illustrated in Gordon Pugh's Staffordshire Portrait Figures in Fig. 58.
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.jpg "Quelle: Christie's")
.jpg "Quelle: Christie's")
