Antique Staffordshire porcelain figure of a seated Giraffe circa 1840 English

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£1650

Dated: 1840 Staffordshire

A very rare antique Staffordshire porcelain figure of a giraffe. Giraffes were viewed with wonder at the beginning of the 19th century.A Giraffe was a diplomatic gift from Mohammed Ali, the viceroy of Egypt, in 1827 to King George IV. King George was enthralled with his gift which was housed in The Royal Pavilion at Brighton. Exotic wild animals and birds had been around in European menageries since the Middle Ages, giraffes proved to be the most elusive and unusual of wild animals. The giraffe presented to the King was not a very healthy animal and suffered from the long arduous journey from Africa and a poor diet. The giraffe was given to a taxidermist on its death its whereabouts are still unkown.

Dimensions: 4 inches high

Current Condition: Tiny chip restored.

£1650    $2227

Description

A very rare antique Staffordshire porcelain figure of a giraffe.
Giraffes were viewed with wonder at the beginning of the 19th century.A Giraffe was a diplomatic gift from Mohammed Ali, the viceroy of Egypt, in 1827 to King George IV.
King George was enthralled with his gift which was housed in The Royal Pavilion at Brighton.
Exotic wild animals and birds had been around in European menageries since the Middle Ages, giraffes proved to be the most elusive and unusual of wild animals.
The giraffe presented to the King was not a very healthy animal and suffered from the long arduous journey from Africa and a poor diet. The giraffe was given to a taxidermist on its death its whereabouts are still unkown.

Additional information

Dimensions 4 in