The cage that 'got away'.

My friend, Cathy, and I like to walk through our favorite antique stores as often as possible. It is usually every month or two that we make a sweep of them, both in this town and a town 30 miles away.  I would like to tell you about the cage that 'got away'.  Keep in  mind that this was before I was looking at bird cages, much less looking for them.


One day we came upon the most unique thing I had ever seen. It was a piece of art hanging from a stand. It was the most gorgeous bird cage I've ever seen. I honestly can't remember what the shape was-whether dome or rectangle. It was brass. But what I remember is the wires. They weren't just brass wires, straight off the top and down to the base. NO!! Each wire was twisted around and around. Intricate twisting wires all around this cage. It reminded me of 'back in the day' oil lamps with the oil dripping along wires around an enclosed statue. Delicate little wires everywhere.


My jaw probably dropped, and I just stood there. There was a note about 'original feeders' and some such thing, but I didn't even look at those. I checked the price and decided it was w-a-y out of range of reality. 'Who would pay that for a decorative bird cage?' I asked myself. HA! Now, knowing what I know, and seeing what I've seen, it was a steal at the original price.


Every time we went back, it was still there. Each time, I would stand and look, think, analyze, and talk myself out of it. For months, it called out to me. The price inched down, but I never took the leap to buy it.  One day we went in there, and it was gone!  I mean gone! Not just moved when the booth was rearranged, but someone had actually bought "my" cage!!


I don't know the manufacturer, but it was definitely Victorian. It could have been a "Hendryx". It could have been Lindemann. Maybe an Osborn. Whoever made it knew art and the 'grab' it would have to the bird cage shoppers of that day. Little did the artist know that 100 years later, the 'grab' would still be in the item.


I wish I had a picture to show you. I just have a fading memory of that cage in my mind. My, it's been over a year, but I still think of that cage, my reluctance in purchasing it, and the regret I carry. Cathy and I still talk about it. Isn't that funny?  That cage made a lasting impression on both of us.  It's still hovering in the back of my brain in the "only if" section.


Maybe that's why I snag pretty much any "Hendryx" that crosses my path! I can't stand to be haunted by another one that 'got away".  I love the Victorian ones; the cages with the carefully formed wires in interesting shapes. This is before the smooth lines of the Machine Age. Before the chrome of the Art Deco era. WAY before the plastic.


If, by chance, you see a Victorian cage with delicate twisting brass wires, that is calling my name and is for sale, please email, call, blog, or come running to my home.  I am interested. Very interested.


Thank you. Barbara