Toy Bank: Monkey and Hurdy-Gurdy
c. 1939
Medium
watercolor and graphite on paperboard
Dimensions
overall: 40.7 x 30.5 cm (16 x 12 in.) Original IAD Object: 4 1/2" high; 4 7/8" wide; monkey: 2 7/8" high
Classification
Index of American Design
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Index of American Design
Accession Number
1943.8.8486
Art Historical Context
Discover the whimsical "Toy Bank: Monkey anddy-Gurdy," a vibrant watercolor and graphite rendering by Cushman Parker, created around 1939. This detailed depiction captures a charming 19th-century mechanical toy, standing just 4½ inches high, featuring a seated monkey cranking a hurdy-gdy. Parker's precise technique on paperboard brings the folk object's playful mechanics to life—imagine inserting a coin to see the monkey "play" its stringed instrument, a nod to the era's popular cast-iron novelties that delighted children and collectors alike. As part of the Index of American Design (IAD), a ...