Does the name Thomas Whittaker mean anything to you?
It does to us, Thomas ‘Gnomeman’ Whittaker (1910-1991) was an English Oak craftsman based in Littlebeck, a village close to the coastal town of Whitby in North Yorkshire.
Whittaker carved a little gnome into each item which left his workshop. It has been debated whether Whittaker carved the motif as according to fables… for each oak seed that sprouts, a gnome is born which will guard the tree throughout its journey. However, we do know that each of his pieces are hand carved of the finest quality and nowadays, are highly collectable.
Whittaker certainly was a very sought after craftsman in his time and fortunately, we currently have a variety of his pieces in stock.. To see examples of his work, please explore our website or visit our showrooms in Barnard Castle… you may even wonder why each Gnome shares a different mood?- we certainly prefer the happy ones!