Fear not: This is neither a juicy scandal nor a moralistic lecture. It’s an overview of all the Cybis retail sculptures ever produced on or with a base, and there’s a more interesting variety of them than one would think. All Cybis bases fall into one of two categories: either physically attached to the sculpture [...]
Are you trying to identify a Cybis porcelain whose name is unknown to you? Here are a few helpful tips for locating it within this website. Human Figures As of March 2021, there is a Visual Index for the identification of human figures and busts. However, it's important to read the introductory paragraph before you [...]
The first decade of the Cybis porcelain 'brand' existence was a bit of a Wild West show, to say the least. Unlike subsequent decades which came under Marylin Chorlton's ownership, most of the 1950s pieces are both a blessing and a curse to collectors. A curse because almost all of them were cast from commercially [...]
The two Boleslaw Cybis porcelain lines (Cordey and Cybis) both utilized a number system for their production but approached them in different ways. A working knowledge of both can be helpful when trying to identify the 1950s output of the Cybis branded items in particular. The Cordey Numbering System Cordey items often contain an embarrassment [...]
If imitation is indeed the sincerest form of flattery, then the Court Jester figure by Cybis should be very flattered indeed. One of the most striking lookalike (copycat) clones surely must be the one that was issued by the Milano Porcelain company. But first, the authentic Cybis sculpture: The Court Jester was issued by Cybis [...]
They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but when it comes to things like copyright infringement there's such a thing as being a little too flattering! So herewith the Archive inaugurates a Hall of Shame displaying blatant knockoffs of Cybis Porcelain copyrighted designs. There is one item that I dithered over adding to [...]
From a collector’s point of view, the issue size of a limited-edition item is of major importance; it’s therefore disconcerting if the artist or manufacturer plays fast and loose with that particular attribute. The concept of marketing retail items as “limited editions” didn’t become widespread until the 1960s. The Boehm Porcelain studio was one of [...]
Although I’ve never been a fan of Cybis’ Hall of Fame series of replicated “legacy” sculptures, I’ve always been curious about how they managed to produce identical but downscaled versions of pieces whose original molds were supposedly destroyed decades ago. So, I decided to learn how the upsize/downsize process actually works. In my quest to [...]
Cybis had differing motivations when it came to doing color variations on certain sculptures, and it can cause considerable confusion when seeing (or selling) them in the secondary market. This is because a color variation may have been done for any one of several purposes. (Note: This article does not apply to the Hall of [...]
The most important elements in authenticating a sculpture that appears, or is claimed, to be Cybis involve the painting/decoration, mold impressions, and applied marks. Painting and Decoration This is the subtlest factor in determining whether a piece of Cybis is genuine and is the most challenging to master. The more Cybis sculptures one sees (if [...]
THE CYBIS ARCHIVE 