Vintage blown mercury glass Spejbl and Hurvínek Christmas ornaments. Made in Czechoslovakia in the 1940's, these are ultra rare. With hand blown Mercury glass and hand painting. In very good condition with a few mall spots of paint loss.
Spejbl and Hurvínek is a Czech puppet comedy duo. The characters were conceived by Czech puppeteer Josef Skupa. Throughout the years the two characters have gained international success.
The first of the puppets, invented by Josef Skupa in 1920, was Spejbl – a retrograde teacher, barely able to keep up with things happening around him. Skupa then performed with him in cabarets in Western Bohemia. In 1926, he brought to life his son, Hurvínek – a sometimes lazy, sometimes hyper-active, child. By that time Skupa had mastered performing with both of them, even providing voices for them, using his typical high-pitch voice for Hurvínek.
The success Skupa had with both of the puppets was enough for him to establish a theatre dedicated to them, in 1930. Skupa handed over the puppeteering to other people in the theatre, and concentrated on providing voices and writing new plots for the two of them. The two characters have entertained both children and adults for decades. Later on, Ms. Kateřina and Mánička, along with Žeryk were introduced, making it more plausible for them to experience the most bizarre and entertaining adventures of all in their stories.