Vintage Cast Iron Early Bird Doorstop with Worm in Green and Yellow

A vintage hand painted cast iron early bird doorstop of a black songbird with a worm in its beak on a yellow and green hillside. Here is proof that the early bird really does catch the worm, and is extremely pleased with himself about it. Cast in solid iron and painted by hand, this songbird lands on a sunny yellow hillside, wings raised in triumph, his breakfast held firmly in his beak. His feathers are painted in inky black with flashes of sky blue, and the hillside below is scattered with tiny white lambs, blue flowers and tufts of green, all set on a deep green plinth decorated with raised scrolls.

The proverb about early birds has been around since at least the seventeenth century, and it suits a doorstop perfectly: something hardworking, cheerful and up before everyone else. Bird designs were always among the most popular cast iron doorstops, and this one has a lovely sense of movement, with the wings sweeping back as though he has only just touched down.

He measures 18 x 19 x 5 cm, a good size for holding open a proper door, with the solid weight that cast iron is prized for. The paint has worn in places to reveal patches of the iron beneath, particularly around the plinth edges and the back, giving him the softly weathered look of a piece that has spent years doing his job by a kitchen or garden door.

Stand him beside a back door with a basket of garden trugs, let him hold open a sunny kitchen on a breezy morning, or set him on a deep windowsill among pots of herbs. He would make a cheerful gift for a keen gardener, a birdwatcher or anyone who swears they are a morning person, and his colours sit happily with sage, butter yellow and duck egg blue.

Unlike the rest of us, he has been up and productive since dawn, and he isn’t about to let you forget it.