Taxidermy.
Love it or hate it, taxidermy appears regularly at auctions and shows and is collected by a diverse group. 19th century society was fascinated with taxidermy, displaying myriad combinations of mammals and insects behind glass and under clear glass domes. The English taxidermist Walter Potter (1835-1918) grew to great fame creating large displays of dead animals posed in scenes from nursery rhymes, literature or mimicking human activities. Potter was an avid, self taught taxidermist, collecting animal freaks of nature and displaying his taxidermy work in his museum. Queen Victoria is reported to have collected his work and adored the scenes Potter created with kittens. Potter’s museum continued after his death and changed ownership in the late 1970s. In 2003, Bonhams London was hired to sell the collection. Damien Hirst reportedly making an unsuccessful bid to buy the whole collection before the sale.
Today taxidermy is enjoying something of a renaissance, with heads and Victorian taxidermy used as decorative motifs in upscale boutiques and coffee shops. Collectors though, need to be aware of the CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) regulations relating to the purchase or disposal of taxidermy or other types of objects with animal parts. Luckily, for those that do not want to collect dead animals or insects, there are modern alternatives available, often called faux taxidermy, including those made with resin or even 3-D printing techniques.
(Above) Taxidermy for sale at a 2017 auction in the North Eastern United States.
Walter Potter. Scene from a 'Kittens Wedding' taxidermy display. Late 19th century.
Photo by Joanna Ebenstein.
The XL Templeton Faux Deer Head Wall Décor by White Faux Taxidermy. Offered by Wayfair on their website.