We have no idea if rats can knuckle down. In fact, we have no idea whether or not rats even have knuckles; at least not in the traditional use of the noun today.
We do know that rats have a collapsible skeleton and can get through seemingly impossibly small holes. We have first-hand experience of rats gnawing through a cement wall. They can even chew through a metal pipe! And cats have nothing on rats when it comes to falling. Fifty feet or so is nothing to a healthy rat. They have survived a nuclear explosion; they laugh; and they can swim for up to three days! To learn more than you ever wanted to know about rats check out Julie Winterbottom.[1]
What is Knuckle Down?
And speaking of knuckles, the idiom “knuckles down” apparently does come from the game of marbles and it dates to the mid-1700s. Chapter 1 of our book The Secret Life of Marbles Their History and Mystery, is “Where Marbles Come from and Why”. In this Chapter we discuss an 1858 woodblock published in London and named “Knuckle Down.”
In June 2020 we were exploring antique shops in Warrington and Pensacola, Florida. We found this rat sculpture or art or figurine. Not sure which. The rat figurine is about 11¼” long X 4½” wide. The larger rat, to the right above, is 6½” tall. It is big! Someone tore the sticker off the bottom. Still we thought that we would quickly find it online, but while we have looked at thousands of rats and mice, no luck finding this one! We have no idea why rats; the tendency is to model cute adorable little mice.
These appear to be field rats or barn rats and they are anything but cute or adorable. The larger one is in blue coveralls and striped shirt; for some reason both are bare footed. Neither one is smiling (since they laugh, they must smile, right?). The smaller rat has on a shirt and jeans with a nice gold buckle. We really like the rat whiskers; black brush bristles. We do not know if it is stone resin, polymer clay, or what.
They are playing ringer. Knowing what we know about rats, we sure hope the little one keeps a sharp eye out. We don’t think that the big guy would have any scruples about pounding the stuffing out of the other one.
Do you have a figurine like this? Ever seen it? We would love to know more about its origins.
African American Memorabilia
Back in 2014 we had better luck identifying a couple of African American memorabilia figurines. Both show two young boys playing “knuckle down.” One of the two has a gold sticker with Treasures of the Heart and Young’s Inc. 1994. In fact, both are from this same Series. Although we look everywhere for this genre, we have only one other piece of Black Americana related to marbles in our collection. It is a Stereoview which we bought in Nokomis, Florida in December 2013. The shop owner would not sell only this one Stereoview, but he priced the whole set. We paid full set price for one card!
At any rate, one of the statues is 5¼” long X 2⅜” wide and the tallest boy is 3⅝”. It is of two young boys playing ringer on what looks to be sand or clay. There are three marbles in the ring and both children appear to be doing well: both marble bags are bulging. One boy has patches on his clothes; the other wears a ball cap. The boys seem happy and the figurine is very realistic. It was made by Young’s Inc. as a collectible edition of Treasures of the Heart in 1994 and this one is branded on the side of the statue as well as having the gold label on the bottom.
We knew in the shop that both figures were some type resin which allowed for remarkable detail as shown in the photograph above. We learned online that the resin is polystone, something that was new to both of us. “Polystone is durable and highly effective at maintaining a sharp paint finish. Unlike porcelain which is fired in an oven, Polystone is a cold-cast material in which no heat is used in the manufacturing process, resulting in much greater variations of paint finish.”[1]
While one is both branded and dated, the sticker on the second is missing and we could find no marks at all on this one. Still, we have no reason not to believe that it is not a Young and a Treasures of the Heart. This one was less appealing to us than the first. While also of polystone and remarkably realistic and beautifully painted, the children are playing in the grass! To our knowledge, that is impossible and it just never happens. On the other hand, there is the added attraction of a dog watching the game.
This one is 2½” tall X 3½” wide X 7⅛” long. Again, we have patches on their clothes and this time, unlike in the first statue, the boys are barefooted. And unlike the first figure one boy in this one has all but one of the marbles. And he is shooting at this last one. Note, however, that he does not “knuckle down”. On the other hand, he may just be laying up his shot. Both boys are very low to the ground.
This is not all we have to say about “knuckle down”. We have many Norman Rockwell memorabilia which have as their inspiration the 1939 Saturday Evening Post art “Knuckles Down.” We have a glass tumbler, drinking glass, Christmas ornament, bell, coffee cup, figurine, collector’s plate, and even a music box! Stay tuned for coming attractions!
[1] Published by consumer mountain 25 April 2007. .http://www.ebay.co.uk/gds/What-is-Polystone-/10000000003438163/g.html 9/30/2014
[2] Frightlopedia: An Encyclopedia of Everything Scary, Creepy, and Spine-Chilling, from Arachnids to Zombies https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/86940/11-beady-eyed-facts-about-rats 9/21/2021
Want to read more about marbles?
