It is not a rule which works in every area of life but, when it comes to vintage finds, I live by the maxim ‘the fewer inches, the better.‘
Which explains my immense joy on spotting some teeny weeny china ornaments on a friend’s Instagram feed.
I’m not too proud to admit that a display of mini nick-nacks on a nicely polished rack can get my blood pumping and, happily, my Instagram pal Jane Chapman was on hand to field all my questions about her thumb-nail sized figurines.
“They are French fèves,” explained Jane, a vintage collector and the creative talent behind Fairy Furniture.
“They were named after fava beans (fèves) which were added to a galette de rois or King Cake made on Twelfth night when the kings arrived at the stable. Whoever got the fève got to wear a crown for the day. The French still make the fèves – and the cakes and the crowns.”
On twelfth night, the fun-loving French throw a huge party centred around a scrummy cake packed with tiny hidden treasures.
“‘La Galette des Rois’ or ‘The Kings’ cake is typically sold from January 1st for a few weeks and comes with a crown made of golden card,” explains life coach and blogger Valerie Jego-Marsh, a Parisian now living in London.
“At the end of the meal, the youngest child goes under the table and is asked to name who the portion is for. This is to ensure randomness of distribution. The person who gets the fève is given the crown and is called king or queen for the day.”
Valerie admits she misses the French traditions around Epiphany; especially the edible treats.
“La Galette des Rois is one of my favourite cakes,” she says wistfully.
“Typically, it’s a cake you buy from a bakery because it comes with the fève and the crown and there is an element of surprise as the baker has hidden the token.”
Valerie still gets her galette fix when she can.
“Now that I live in London, I get to eat one or two when I go home for Christmas,” she says.
“My parents will keep any fèves for me from cakes they eat. I’ve been collecting them all my life. There used to be a religious element to the fève but in the last 30 years or so, they can be of any design, any topic, some are cute, some are cultural and some are truly naff”
Source
History of fèves
According to Emily Monaco*, an American writer living in Paris, modern-day celebration of the Epiphany is not so much about religion but a reason for French families to ‘get together in the New Year’.
“The origins of this tradition have nothing to do with Epiphany – or Christianity for that matter – but rather date to the ancient Roman feast of Saturnalia,” she explains.
“During this celebration of the winter solstice, masters and slaves ate at one table and, from this mixed group, a king was elected…with a fava bean (fève in French) used as the voting token.”
By the Middle Ages, chomping on a fève wasn’t considered such a lucky break.
“Tradition required the king to pay for everyone else’s drinks,” Emily explains.
“To avoid footing the bill, people started swallowing the edible fava bean if they discovered it in their slice.”
By the 19th Century, bakers found a solution to this problem – they replaced the fava bean with a porcelain token (usually baby Jesus) which was far harder to gobble down.
According to Emily, production of fèves began in Saxony but eventually moved to Limoges; the centre of fine French porcelain. At one time Limoges was producing millions of fèves each year until the industry ceased in 1988 (today 99 per cent of fèves are made in China).
“Fèves attract collectors called fabophiles,” she says.
” (Some) fabophiles seek out pop culture nods to The Simpsons and Disney, while others prefer unique fèves like those created every year for France’s top pastry chefs. In 2017, a Burgundian baker even produced a line of fèves featuring a dozen different Kama Sutra positions. They were probably best not served to groups of children.”
French vintage enthusiast Ruth Taylor sells beautiful French finds (including fèves) from her Instagram account Old French Things.
“I find my fèves in brocantes and markets, sometimes just one or two in the bottom of a box with a bit of dry cake still attached,” laughs Ruth who usually takes extended buying trips to France a couple of times every year.
“Sometimes, if I am lucky, I’ll find a whole bag full for just a few Euros. The modern mass produced figures are now more common – characters from Frozen and Asterix and I have even seen a Jackson Pollock fève!”
Ruth prefers vintage versions; “The old fèves are harder to find now. They are crude but charming and painted by hand. I look for shepherds and wise men, angels and donkeys and I sell a boxed nativity set with twenty or more figures at Christmas fairs,” she says.
“I put the nativity sets together myself. Angels are the hardest to find – there aren’t many angels out there. Vintage nativity sets are so popular with my customer and sell like hot cakes…but I do keep the odd sheep for myself but only if it has a nice face.”
Doll’s house enthusiast Dagmar Turnidge, who lives in Melbourne, Australia, uses fèves to decorate her miniature rooms.
Dagmar also sells dolls house miniatures from her Etsy shop Mini Decor Studio.
“I discovered fèves while searching for miniatures on Etsy. The range is huge and generally the scale suits 1:12 dolls houses perfectly. My favourite is the black Art Deco panther. You don’t see a lot in Melbourne and I buy the majority of my fèves from ValueARTifacts in America. I managed to find my three wise men here in Melbourne for £2 AUD (£1) – I was thrilled.”
Where to buy
If you are not lucky enough to be swanning in and out of Parisian patisseries during the first week of January – do not despair. Fèves are not just for Christmas but can be found in a variety of different non-cake based locations.
Antique and vintage shops – Look out for dealers who specialise in French items like the magnifique Andy who curates Brocanteur at Hebden Bridge Antiques Centre.
According to Alexa Kerr, manager of the centre, Andy makes regular trips to France and currently has a collection of around 5,000 fèves available from 50p each.
eBay – Tread carefully unless you really know your fava beans from your French onions. eBay sellers are often pitching fève sets to collectors which means they attract eye-watering prices. As figures were made in different quantities – if you collect Harry Potter fèves there are more Ron Weasleys than Dracos in circulation – you will often see people paying through the nose to secure a rare figure to complete their collection.
Etsy – you can buy with confidence from a fève expert like Laurel Broadfoot who sells through her Etsy store ValueARTifacts. You will have to pay for postage from America (Laurel is based in Tennessee) but she really is the queen of fèves and runs the online ‘fan’ club Feve Collector.
As for UK sellers, Greenbanks had six vintage fève villagers on Etsy for £18 for sale on April 11th 2020.
Crafter and vintage lover Rosie Rix, of Portsmouth, fell in love with fèves when she began collecting tiny treasures to display in her home.
“I’ve always had a love for all things tiny and have five printers trays full of miniatures. I started off finding the odd fève at car boots; mainly the traditional type. I then searching eBay and on Instagram. My biggest score was a jar full for £6 at a car boot but the most I’ve paid is £2 each.
I have them displayed in various thimble holders and on doll house sized sideboards. I also use them as ornaments in my doll houses (another of my many collections) I think I have about 150 in total. My favourite is the pumpkin that was in the £6 jar. I have a real mix of traditional ones, Looney Tunes, Disney, Asterix, nursery rhymes and lots of others. They’re such an easy thing to collect as they don’t take up a lot of space and are relatively inexpensive. Tiny things rock!”
To see more of Rosie’s collections visit her Instagram account @dollysdaydreams
Looking for something ‘special’ madame? – If you want something older, explore the virtual shops of online dealers who specialise in French antiques. On the day of my search, For the Love of French Antiques, had just sold a set of bisque and glazed porcelain fèves (left) dating from 1900-1960 for $30 (£24.10) plus postage.
It is worth asking dealers who specialise in French curios and antiques to look out for old fèves. Alternatively, seize the opportunity to visit France in January 2021 (God willing) and take a trip to some of its wonderful brocantes.
Artist Kitty Valentine, of East London, runs a vintage homewares page on Etsy @FadingStarVintage. Kitty inadvertently became a fan of fèves when she spotted some for sale on a buying trip to France.
“I found my little group of fèves in my favourite Sunday flea market in Paris about nine years ago. I didn’t know what they were so I asked the old man selling them and he explained about the King Cake.
They are very old ones that he had collected over many years and he had a cardboard box full of them. They were just a couple of Euro for a handful of them – I chose ones with the sweetest expressions. I was delighted to find a tiny Pierrot among them as well as a Virgin Mary – my two obsessions.
I’ve seen many more since but they seem to have become more expensive. I wish I had bought more of them now.”
Are they worth collecting?
Absolument. As previously mentioned there are fabophiles who buy to complete sets and specialists who buy on a theme or subject which can bump the prices up. Plus you have vintage collectors like moi who use older ones in doll’s houses or buy to display on printer’s trays. The following pictures feature eBay sales during the months of March/April 2020.
So what did Jolly Volley buy?
It will come as no surprise to find I have added one or two (a dozen) fèves to my collection of miniatures. In my defence, they are a perfect scale (1:12) for my doll’s house vintage shop.
According to the seller (I bought them from eBay) nine are vintage figures featuring regions of France and three are from a nativity set.
Even better, when I sent pictures to my new French friend Valerie Jego-Marsh (see above) she pronounced them ‘Wonderful,”
“These are lovely figurines wearing traditional regional costumes from different parts of France – you can’t get more French than that.”
They were listed for £18 but the seller very kindly accepted £14. As Easter gifts to myself go – I am one happy bunny.
Sources
- You can find Emily Monaco’s full article about fèves on the website USA Today.
- Please note this feature was written during the COVID-19 lockdown and no dealers were out shopping or travelling and – sadly – even the New Orleans bakery was closed for the duration….
