Odd Rabbit

So last month we had a large estate to pack up for a up coming specialized auction.
Several pieces intrigued me here, but there was one that really stuck out as just plain weird.
Its a rabbit. Its maybe 2.5-3' tall, but sits. Its made of leather I think, but is detailed in rabbit fur. His hands are wrapped in leather (I think), but in such a way they look like mummy hands.
The lady had it sitting in a chair in her guest room and said she put the book Peter Cotton Tail in its hands but said when her granddaughter was little it scared her so bad she had to put him away in the closet (I dont know whats scarier for a child, it being in the room or knowing its in the closet lol)

Anyways, I was watching "Ghost Adventures" and they were doing an episode in the guys museum out in Las Vegas.
He has various rooms categorized by theme. In one room he calls "The puppet room" there the exact same rabbit sat, just in different clothing.
It made me wonder what the story was on these rabbits were.


Anyone know anything about them?

 

The one in your last photo above has on red pants so . . . I'm betting that the one in the museum in Las Vegas was showing "Uncle Wiggily" (Longears) (a well-known rabbit in children's literature that wore red trousers). The "Uncle Wiggily" books were wonderful (and favorite books of mine way back when ).

 

SeaGoat, wish I could help you with your weird Mr. Rabbit because I own his friend - weird Mr. Deer holding a compass - who sits year round in a normal-sized chair in our living room just creeping folks out . Picked him up just over a year ago in an auction lot of Christmas stuff and he's been a total mystery... no tags ...hand sewn clothes (layers of them!) with patches and mismatched buttons. I will be following this thread in hopes that your sleuthing may turn up some info.

Edited to add: mine has faux fur and faux leather

 

They are both kinda scary.

 

Huh! What are his antlers made of?

It may be faux leather, but idj, it felt a lot like dried leather and the fur was very very soft. I didnt get to look over him as closely as Id have liked though.

 

Antlers are some type of plastic. I originally thought the hands were wrapped in leather, but from looking at the spots where the top surface is worn and the fibers that stick out along the edge caused me to rethink that ... I'll go take a look again at it, though to be sure.

 

Would you call this antique or vintage anthropomorphic taxidermy rabbits?

https://www.google.com/search?q=ant...DfmMzOAhUG0GMKHRYvAxcQsAQIGg&biw=1024&bih=649

--- Susan

 

I LOVE those Walter Potter taxidermy vignettes ... (and am always hoping to run across one in my travels)

 

I dont think thats what they are. I think they are some kind of story book characters

 

On the story book idea, the so call deer holding a watch probably started out as Lewis Carroll's White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland who wore a waistcoat (to us Americans a vest) running around saying "Oh, dear! Oh dear! I shall be late."

A couple of other older fictional rabbits:
Br'er Rabbit from Uncle Remis
Benjamin Bunny from Beatrice Potter's Tales.

--- Susan