DOCTOR AND NURSE FIGURINES 

 

Written and Photographed by June Grayson 

 

 

 

 

 

"Doctor, lawyer, merchant, chief." Fortunately for collectors, children aren't the only ones who know that old nursery rhyme. The artists who conceive the myriad lines of collectibles now offered in the marketplace are hard-pressed to keep up with the continuing demand for what I call "occupational figurines." 

Lucky for you if you or a family member or friend work in one of those careers whose essence can be readily captured in pottery, porcelain, or wood. You can always find an ideal present or souvenir for any occasion.

Our burgeoning collection of doctor and nurse figurines started innocently enough almost 20 years ago. A grateful patient gave my husband an exquisitely detailed porcelain doctor figurine almost 20" tall. Richard placed it on a table among other medical mementos in his waiting room.  

Somehow it mysteriously "disappeared" only a few months later, although nothing like that has happened to us before or since in the little heartland suburb where we live. Because this occurred before we became interested in collecting, I had never once turned it over to find out the name and date of the maker!I regret that I will never be able to replace it or recognizea duplicate at this late date even if I should find one.  

Our medical collectibles are still on display. Now, however, they repose in a large (and locked) oak display cabinet. Patients seem to enjoy looking at them. We think it contributes to the comfortable and home-like atmosphere we aim for in the office of a specialist in internal medicine.  

Anthropomorphic figures are nothing new, of course,  

Prehistoric potters have made likenesses of human beings since the dawn of history, portraying human as well as mythical creatures. Jugs in the shape of human heads have been found in Britain from the time of the Roman occupation. Peruvian potters in South America made portrait jugs for use as water bottles. 

German stoneware jugs called "Greybeards", with bearded human faces carved on the necks of the jugs, appeared in the 15th century. In the early 18th century, unknown English potters made small earthenware figures in the shapes of soldiers and musicians. The famed Meissen company in Europe produced many porcelain figurines, now in museums and private collections around the world. Later, English potters during the Victorian Age produced literally millions of the humble toys, known as Staffordshire figurines, for the English lower classes.  

Doctors and nurses are seldom represented in these images. Evidently, these professions did not have the importance that they do today. However, the book by Robert Schmidt published in 

1932, PORCELAIN AS AN ART AND THE MIRROR OF FASHION, pictures a Meissen figurine from the 18th century entitled "Quack Doctor." 

Three rare Staffordshire figurines depict Florence Nightingale, The Lady With The Lamp, who reformed the nursing profession through her service to British troops during the Crimean War in the 1850s. 

The rise in respect for the healing professions has been related to the great improvements in public health and sanitation as well as the medical means to identify and control infectious disease, all of which began less than 200 years ago. Evidently, the increase in the production of medical figurines has risen proportionately to the doctor's perceived reputation.

Most figurines still portray doctors as men and nurses as women. Yet that is changing. Lladro offers a current figurine of a woman doctor. The Italian ANRI woodcarvings by the Australian artist, Sarah Kay, include three medical figurines: a female nurse carrying a tray, (Tender Loving Care), a male doctor with a stethoscope and doctor's bag (House Call), and a female doctor examining a patient's chart (Yearly Check Up).  

Some artists take a satirical view of doctors. It is not surprising that we should have this love-hate relationship with doctors. Who wants to face the awful anxieties of sometimes inevitable disability and death?  

	How will doctors and nurses be portrayed in the 21st century? I only hope they won't be personified as print-outs from an impersonal computer data-bank. 

Still, for most people today, the doctor remains the embodiment of the compassionate healer and friend: to cure sometimes, to comfort always, to harm never.  

As Norman Rockwell entitled his March 9, 1929, Saturday Evening Post cover (later interpreted in a porcelain figurine) from the writings of Jean Jacques Rousseau, "What wisdom can you find that is greater than kindness?" 	####### 

June Grayson is a registered nurse who manages her doctor husband's medical office. He collects old medical books, brass mortars and pestles, and medical figurines. She collects Victorian cracker jars and writes about antiques and collectibles.