Object Description
Staffordshire figure with a folklore theme which features Ellen Blight with a lion and leopard, stood on an oval base. The piece is titled, ‘Death of the Lion Queen’ . Multi-coloured with underglaze blue version. Dull gilt titles and embellishment. Flatback, decorated mainly to the front. Vent hole to the underside. This piece represents Ellen Blight, the lion trainer. In 1850, whilst performing in Chatham with a lion and tiger, the latter seized her by the throat and killed her before she could be rescued. The affair led to the prohibition of such performances by women but the leading menageries continued to have ‘lion kings’.