Mr Featherwick & Mrs Cluckington French Provincial Rooster & Hen Statues, Rust Cast Iron Set of Two

A rooster and his hen in their Sunday best, one off to dig and one back with the morning's eggs.

Mr Featherwick and Mrs Cluckington are a matched pair cast in solid iron and finished in a natural rust patina. He is a rooster with a full upright comb and hanging wattles, wearing a floral-embossed jacket and trousers, holding a small garden shovel upright against his chest with the blade up and his fist closed round the handle. She is a hen with a smaller comb, in a long floral-embossed dress to the ground, carrying a soft cloth pouch of eggs in both hands at her waist. Both stand on rounded bases cast as two clawed chicken feet.

Together they weigh 2.55 kg, which is the difference between cast iron and the resin figures that copy this shape. Both are 22cm tall and only 8cm wide, so the pair fits a windowsill or a narrow shelf where a wider piece will not go. Built for outdoor life, and the rust patina is a finish rather than a fault, so weather deepens them instead of wearing them out.

Why we love it

• ◆They are a genuine pair, cast as husband and wife, same height, same embossed treatment, different comb, different garment, different errand. He is off to dig, she is back with the eggs
• ◆The embossing, flowers, leaves and small birds worked right around his jacket and trousers and her dress, not just on the front
• ◆The two errands, a proper little garden spade held upright against his chest, and a whole cloth pouch of eggs carried in both her hands, the cloth folds cast as carefully as the eggs inside
• ◆The feet, both bases cast as two clawed chicken feet, below his trouser cuffs and below her hem, which is the detail that makes the whole conceit work

How to style it

They are tall and narrow and they are a double act, so give them height and give them a little distance.

• Stand them on a kitchen windowsill where the light comes through the embossing
• Set them either side of a doorway, a mantel or a window so the pair reads across the space
• Put them on a dresser shelf among the plates
• Sit them on a step beside a basket of real eggs, or by the potting bench, and let the joke land
• Group them with the rest of our garden sculptures

Care & Keeping

Wipe with a soft dry cloth to lift dust out of the embossed flowers and around the combs. The rust patina is a finished surface and needs no sealing. Place a felt pad or a saucer underneath on pale stone or painted timber, and keep harsh chemical cleaners and abrasive pads away from them.

Because Mr Featherwick and Mrs Cluckington are hand-finished, slight variations in patina, texture, and grain are natural and add to the unique character of each piece. Colour may also vary slightly between screens, all photography is taken in natural light.