| ANTIQUE POMERANIANS |
| These antique pictures of Pomeranians are from my own very small collection. They show that our current Pomeranians are in some ways very much changed from their not-so-distant ancestors. One of the biggest changes has been in size, from 20 or more pounds in the 19th century down to our own expected size of 3-7 pounds. |
| The first picture is the earliest picture labeled "Pomeranian" that I know anything about. It is an engraving that was published in Buffon's "Natural History" in London, in 1785. |
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| This is a "type" that is still common among the products of backyard breeders and puppy mills--short, flat coat; long, pointed muzzle; ears placed wide on the head. |
| The next two pictures are from "Cassell's Illustrated Book of the Dog," published in 1880. At this time Pomeranians were much larger than they commonly are today. (Compare with the Maltese in the color chromolithograph.) Also, the most common color was white, with black another fairly common color. Larger Poms today are, in a sense, "throwbacks" to this earlier ancestor. |
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| The engraving below is from a children's book published in 1890. An interesting note on this book is the description given to children: "Observe this picture of a Pomeranian dog. He is said to be not so affectionate as other dogs are, and that he soon forgets one master and takes to another. They are quite ladies' dogs, and dog-stealers are very fond of enticing them away." |
| In doing Rescue, we can be glad that Pomeranians will take to "another master" easily. Instead of showing them lacking in affection, it shows that even in 1890 Poms were friendly dogs, happy to be loved by anyone willing to show them affection. |
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