I received several photos from Beth in response to the groupings seen on prior entries of the blog. She doesn't have shelves on the wall, but has a baker's rack that has a designated top shelf for cages.
The one of the left appears to be the oldest. It has 3 feeders, an older-styled finial and no seed guard. It is complete with the swing and an opal glass bird bath is also present. It has patent dates from 1874-1881.
The middle cage, which is referred to in the catalogs as the 'globe', has a screen seed guard, a round swing, an interestingly wired base which completes the globe shape, and a pedestal which allows it to sit on a shelf. Note the newer-shaped finial.
The last cage has the older-styled finial and also has a seed guard. Later versions of the cages with the seed guards had the door on the second floor and the seed guard wrapping the first floor of the cage except for the feeder openings. Note this cage has a door on the first floor and the guard fashioned around it. This is notably an early version of the guard being in use. It has patent dates of 1874-1905.
Porcelain birds add character and charm to these cages.
Thank you, Beth, for your addition to the blog. Your cages make a lovely statement of art and character. I like the birds. Easy to care for and to clean up after!!!
I have a friend, Cathy, who is strongly encouraging me to build shelves to get some of my cages off the floor. I'm not quite at that stage yet, but if I get there, I'll post those photos.
Thank you to those of you who are reading this. Please feed free to comment. You can add pictures to this blog by sending them to tweetthings53@gmail.com along with your statements regarding the photos. I will post the photos and comments for you.
Happy New Year and Happy Hunting. It's already the 2nd day of the year. Has anyone purchased a 2014 cage yet?
Barbara
