Coursing greyhounds
Coursing, the pursuit of hares by greyhounds, was a very popular Victorian sport. The whippet is a smaller dog but very similar in type to a greyhound and would have been kept by many country folks. They would have been used to pursue rabbits as in these figures. The prey is indeed rabbit, as rabbits have smaller ears than hares.
These fine figures show whippets chasing rabbits. The dogs are leaping a fence with a stream below.
They are 11 inches tall. See Harding, Victorian Staffordshire Dogs page 86, figs 2661/2662.
More Figures of the month
Rare figure of Victorian card playing
At first glance, this may appear to be an ordinary arbour figure. But upon closer inspection, one can see these three people are engaged in a game of cards.
George Washington and Zachary Taylor
This is a very rare pair of figures portraying George Washington and Zachary Taylor. They stand approximately 9” and 9.1″ tall, and date to approximately 1850.
Tam O’Shanter and John Gilpin
This is a very rare pair of figures portraying Tam O’Shanter and John Gilpin. They stand approximately 8.6″ and 9.0″ tall, and date to approximately 1845.
Edward Morgan and Jenny Jones
This is a rare pair of figures portraying Edward Morgan and Jenny Jones, titled with gilt script. The romantic tale of Morgan and Jones was set to music in 1825 by Charles James Mathews.
Field Marshal Fitzroy Raglan
This is a rare figure of Field Marshal Fitzroy Raglan. The figure stands about 12 1/4” tall and dates to about 1854.
Black and white spaniels
This is fine pair of #1 black and white Staffordshire spaniels. They have a raised number one on the underside, designating them as the largest in a series of six sizes, number six being the smallest.
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