I'm becoming quite enamored of old wooden toys, especially ones with moving parts, and this is quite a charming one! It features two wooden boxers, painted white with black details, and when you press the button on at the center of the wooden base, the boxes lean in towards each other to butt heads, causing their arms to swing as well. (The arms, which are attached by nails, are not directly activated by the push of the button--at least not any more; it is just the momentum from their forward motion that causes the arms to swing.)
I just love the silhouettes of the figures, and their curious painted faces, which are quite different from one other, giving them distinct personalities. Thanks to the original research of another seller out there who found a similar toy and did a lot of digging to figure out its origins (these are quite rare, from what I understand), I know this was made by the Weston Toy Company in Weston, CT, which operated from 1859 to 1899--so the toy is well over a hundred years old.
It measures 4 7/8" long x 1 1/16" wide x 4" tall and is in good antique condition, with some loss of white paint particularly along the edges of the figures and fading of the black details of the faces particularly on one side. I think this all makes the piece even better; it's really a wonderful object deserving of a a very special spot!
