Vintage Abraham Lincoln Bust Bookends by PM American Craftsman

This is a pair of vintage Abraham Lincoln bust bookends. These bookends are made of brass and were produced by PM Craftsman in the United States. The bookends depict President Abraham Lincoln, from head to shoulders, atop small pedestals. Lincoln is cast with a beard, presented in full suit, bowtie, and top coat, and has a stoic yet determined look on his face. These small but sturdy bookends will hold up to a large set of books.

These bookend busts of President Lincoln were modeled after the 1922 portrait bronze  completed by American Beaux Arts artist and sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens. Saint-Gaudens based Lincoln’s likeness on plaster life casts of the president’s head. The sculptor was inspired by Lincoln’s landmark 1860 speech at Cooper Union in New York, in which the future president declared that the founders would have opposed the expansion of slavery into new American territories. In this speech Lincoln also made famous the phrase “Let us have faith that right makes might.”

Founded in 1911 by the Startzman family, PMC produced casket hardware using permanent bronze mold slush-metal castings.  In the early 1950s, the company began producing a line of brass bookends using molds of their own design as well as molds acquired from Jennings Brothers and the K&O Company. The company moved from Philadelphia to its present location in Lakeland, Florida where it still produces a line of quality bookends under the name, PM Craftsman. Company President Linda Startzman Schofield represents the third generation of the Startzmans to run the firm.

CONDITION:

Very good + condition. Set of 2. Scattered small surface wear, including light tarnish and surface scratches, as expected with age and past use.  Open bottom on one of the bookends. 

Dimensions: 5 1/5" H x 3 1/2" W x 2 3/8" D each. 

Accompanied by our company's letter of authenticity.