Item HT 4242 Marionette - Le Forgeron Marionettes, Green Eel, 1930-1956

Summary

Hand made marionette depicting a green eel. It was manufactured and operated in Melbourne by Alex and Murray Smith, who performed as part of Le Forgeron Marionettes from 1930 until 1956.

Physical Description

Marionette depicting a eel, with a long, thin body made from a shiny green fabric and stuffed with 13 ping-pong balls. He has a tail fin and a fin which runs down the top half of his back; these are made from the same fabric. His body has painted black decoration. There is a hole in one of the seams. He has a yellow, felt collar around his neck with black polka dots painted on it. His head is very light in comparison to the other marionettes- unsure what it has been constructed from. His head is white and egg-shaped. His eyes protrude from his head and have big black rings around them and unattached red pupils inside; they are covered with clear plastic to form the eyes. The mouth and ears are paper-covered cardboard; the ears are green and the mouth red; both are quite damaged, particularly the ears where the paper is peeling off and they are bent completely out of shape. His eyebrows are of blue paper and have been stuck on. The eel has a mechanism made from two pieces of wood.