Introduction: This was written by a great Muffed Ice pigeon breeder of his time.
ICE By Dr P Trubenbach, Chemnitz, Germany in his 'Tauben Zuchter' No. 5. pp. 41-44. 3 November 1933.
SAXON MUFFED ICE IN ENGLAND AND WITH US (GERMANY) Part 1
Ice pigeons have hardly been seen in England (where only the so-called Muffed Ice are known) for more than ten years; and I venture to say that the English first obtained a conception of the true quality of fine Ice through my pre-war sales to Mr Plimpton of Beverley, and others. But the breed and quality there, in comparison with the German, stands on no particular high level. The colour is mostly too hard - too blue, and greenish necks are often found in excellent birds! Certainly fine things are seen so far as colour comes into the question, but absolute purity of flights, so far as 'Grizzled' and 'Rust' come into consideration, play a more subordinate part than with us. The dark flights are mostly very good, but the white wing bars are mostly very jaggedly edged. In the last issue of the English Pigeon Paper 'Pigeons' a white barred Ice is portrayed which in body and in flight colour appears to be very good. The extraordinary light ear spots could be made practically to disappear before exhibition if they were well dried up with a pad of wadding dipped in Benzine*, whereby the fat, which really holds the stain and creates the spot is dissolved.
This Ice in the English newspaper, stands amply tall, with us it is required to appear to be upon the ground. The black eye in the English picture appears good, while the beak which should be the colour of black horn, clear lights may be recognised, which may be reflections of light. It may be interesting to hear details of the standard points of the English bred Ice.
With us the size of a good field pigeon is demanded with a broad somewhat high breast, broad back, body falling away behind to the tip of the tail.
The colour should be quite uniformly clear ice grey in all parts of the plumage, with the exception of the flights, the wing bar edging and the tail bars. In comparison the black, rather long thin beak rises up strikingly against the flat white powdered small wattles near the forehead (frontal).
