Unseen for more than 20 years, the Icons - Mary Poppins umbrella prototype was the first to be presented to the Walt Disney Corporation, as a prototype for licensing for a 1:1 scale prop replica.
Disney borrowed the Icons umbrella and referenced it to make their first (lower-priced / less detailed) replica, as at the time, they did not know where the original "Hero" prop was and were totally unfamiliar with the Film & Television prop replica market.
Icons' head of R&D Peter Greenwood tracked down the original plaster "Buck" (or sculpture master) for the prop Poppin's umbrella parrot handle, from the estate of the prop master on the original film. It was a first generation, plaster casting. The original buck was cast from a mold taken off of the original parrot-head sculpture, created by a member of the productions Art Department.
The umbrella portion of the prototype was made in the U.K. by an umbrella company, which was very difficult to track down. The fabric is old-fashioned and very thick, with nice quality accents. The parrot handle features inset glass eyes and amazing, detailed paint job. Very reminiscent of the screen-used original.
The picture below is a concept advertisement for the Poppins umbrella replica, with some Disney's annotations.
