Charming Little Striped German Erzgebirge / Putz Houses, A Pair hand hoe I have found myself actively

I have found myself actively looking at antique Stereoviews of late

There in one small surface chip on one of the handles mid-way down

and would strongly suggest it was made in a grocery store for actual store use

and is included in many museum collections including that of MoMA

Charming Little Striped German Erzgebirge / Putz Houses, A Pair hand hoe I have found myself activelyThe hand painted red stripes on these two completely delights me, I would guess intended to make them look Christmas y, but to me making them look quite carnivalesque! Terrific painted roofs, too. German, I think these would be described as Putz, which evolved from the German word "putzen" meaning to clean or to decorateas beginning in the late 19th c. or so these were used to decorate around Christmas nativity scenes. I believe this pair dates to the