Antique Cast Iron Figural Shutter Dog shaded blocks Pretty rare

Pretty rare

I believe these were delivery slips

painted fabulous bright colors (painted on both sides)

I believe a repair to stabilize the split down his forehead

natives with shields

Antique Cast Iron Figural Shutter Dog shaded blocks Pretty rareI didnt actually know what this was when I found it in Maine the other daybut of course I fall in love with things all the time whose original function is a mystery to me! Ive since learned, though, that it is a Shutter dog made to hold a shutter open (dog being an Old English term for fastener). This one, later 19th c. French I believe, functions like a hingethe top half can be locked in place at a 90 degree angle, which would be the shutter pinning