Bidspirit auction | Antique Cast Iron Mechanical Bank

Antique Cast Iron Mechanical Bank — ”Jolly N***** Bank, ” High Hat Version, John Harper & Co., England, c. 1892–1900 - Antique Cast Iron Mechanical Bank — ”Jolly N***** Bank, ” High Hat Version, John Harper & Co., England, c. 1892–1900. A cast-iron mechanical coin bank of the ”Jolly” type, depicting a caricatured bust of a Black man in a red jacket and bow tie, wearing the taller ”high hat” variant of the classic top hat. This example is the English-made version produced by John Harper & Co. Ltd. (Albion Works, Willenhall, Staffordshire), which manufactured this pattern from roughly 1892 to 1900 as one of several UK firms that copied the original American design after the Shepard Hardware Co. patent of March 14, 1882. The mechanism operates in the standard manner for the type: a coin is placed in the figure's outstretched palm, and depressing the lever at the shoulder raises the arm to deposit the coin into the mouth, while the eyes roll upward and the tongue retracts, returning to rest position when the lever is released.