Goebel | Berta Hummel 'Fishing for Trouble' BH 118 | Porcelain Figure | Thailand, 1999

Goebel | Berta Hummel ‘Fishing for Trouble’ BH 118 | Porcelain Figure | Thailand, 1999

He has his rod over his shoulder and a basket ready – and has already caught the seat of his own shorts.

Berta Hummel (1909–1946) was a German artist from Massing, Bavaria, who later entered the Siessen convent as Sister Maria Innocentia. Her drawings of children inspired the M.I. Hummel figurines introduced by Goebel in 1935. This example belongs to Goebel’s later Berta Hummel collection, a separate range of porcelain figures produced in Asia. Model BH 118, ‘Fishing for Trouble’, was introduced in 1999 and bears a Thailand mark.

The boy stands on an oval grassy base, a long slender rod held over his shoulder in both hands. The line, of real cord, runs from the top of the rod, and its wire hook has caught in the seat of his shorts. He looks back over his shoulder, mouth open, while the hook remains caught. He wears a red checked shirt with a blue neckerchief, brown shorts with braces crossed at the back, rumpled grey socks and dark shoes. Beside him stands a lidded wicker basket, a blue cloth showing beneath the lid. The figure has a matt finish.

“Berta Hummel” is printed in green on the front of the base, and the underside is printed in green “Fishing for Trouble, BH118, © Goebel 1999, Thailand”.

Excellent condition, with no chips, cracks or restoration. The rod, line and hook are all present.

Key Details

• Maker: Goebel
• Series: Berta Hummel
• Model: ‘Fishing for Trouble’, BH 118
• Material: porcelain, matt finish; rod with cord line and wire hook
• Marks: “Berta Hummel” printed on the base front; underside “Fishing for Trouble BH118 © Goebel 1999 Thailand”
• Date: model introduced in 1999
• Dimensions: height 10 cm
• Weight: 111 g
• Condition: excellent; rod, line and hook present
• Buyer profile: Hummel collectors, and anyone who fishes or knows someone who does

Collector Appeal

‘Fishing for Trouble’ makes a small mishap the whole story of the figure, and this example still has its rod, cord line and hook – the parts most easily lost or broken on a figure like this.

Every keen angler has had a day like this one.