Brownie Points

This charm depicts a Palmer Cox Brownie.  You can learn a bit about these sprites in the passages below.

Palmer Cox (April 28, 1840-July 24, 1924) was a Canadian born artist, best known for his series of humorous verse cartoons about the mischievous but kind-hearted Brownies. The cartoons were published in several books, such as The Brownies, Their Book (1887). Due to the popularity of Cox's Brownies, one of the first popular handheld cameras was named after them, the Eastman Kodak "Brownie camera.”  (Source:  Wikipeda, the Free Encyclopedia).

Cox gave each Brownie either a country or an occupation to represent - and adorned them accordingly. One of his favorites was a Brownie called the Dude, a Dapper-Dan type of guy in a tuxedo with a top hat, monocle and cane to complete his debonair appearance. There were Brownies representing lands from China to Ireland to Scotland to Germany, as well as an American Indian and an Uncle Sam, and occupations from Policeman to Sailor to Soldier.  (Source:  “A Look at The Brownies,” The Main Event, Scoop, Friday, February 21, 2003).

This page of scarf pins from a 1909 Baird-North catalog features a few Brownies, including Dude (#16285), Cop (#16274) and unnamed (#16293).  Keep an eye out for characters with round bodies and long spindly legs — and you may find yourself enjoying a Brownie.