1962 Austin Productions Darwin Monkey Statue, Ape With Skull Thinker Chalkware Sculpture, 10 Inch

This 1962 Austin Productions Darwin monkey statue depicts a thoughtful ape seated on books while examining a human skull.

Finished in dark bronze tones, this heavy chalkware sculpture is an unusual display piece for a study, library, science collection, or curiosity cabinet.

Details

• Item: Darwin monkey with skull sculpture
• Design: Ape seated on stacked books and holding a human skull
• Maker: Austin Productions, Inc.
• Date: Copyright 1962
• Mark: Marked © 1962 Austin Prod. Inc. along the lower back edge
• Inspiration: Based on Hugo Rheinhold's Ape with Skull sculpture
• Materials: Cast plaster or chalkware composition
• Finish: Dark brown and bronze-tone painted finish with an aged ivory and yellow skull
• Style: Mid-century figural sculpture with science, philosophy, and evolution themes
• Size: Approximately 10 inches tall, 5 inches wide, and 5 inches long
• Weight: Approximately 4 pounds 10 ounces

Condition Grade: Good

Positives

• The statue is solid and complete with no chips or cracks found.
• The ape, skull, books, face, hands, and feet retain strong molded detail.
• The dark bronze-tone finish remains attractive and gives the piece the look of aged metal.

Issues / Wear

• There is visible paint loss and rubbing along the front and lower edges of the base.
• The human skull has yellowing, dark marks, and uneven age discoloration.
• The painted finish shows scattered scratches, rubs, small marks, and color variation.
• The brown felt covering on the underside is worn, dusty, and partly separated, with exposed adhesive and base material around the edges.

See all photos for detail — sold as pictured.

Condition Grade Key

• Near Fine: Almost perfect. Very minor signs of age only.
• Very Good: Shows light use. Sound and attractive with minor flaws.
• Good: Complete and intact. Noticeable wear consistent with age and use.
• Fair: Shows significant wear. Readable or usable but clearly used.

Collector's Notes

The design comes from Hugo Rheinhold's late nineteenth-century sculpture of an ape studying a human skull while seated on books.

It suits a collector interested in evolution, philosophy, science history, unusual library decor, or mid-century sculpture.

This Austin Productions version is clearly dated 1962 and has substantial weight and strong molded detail.

It is the sort of piece that gets noticed before anyone quite knows what to make of it.

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