A Good Quality Open Mounted Mid 20thC Taxidermy Fox Mask & Forequarters
SOLD
Origin: Mid Twentieth Century
Provenance: Unknown
Date: c.1950-70
Height: 17 inches
Width: 8 inches
Depth: 14 inches (all at maximum)
Offering Horace the fox, his head and forequarters wonderfully well preserved and in excellent condition, snarling open mounted as if appearing through a wall.
Horace was the top British athlete of his day and won gold at the Commonwealth games for Animals (1955) and the Animal Olympics (1959). His fearsome running, best over medium distances, (think 400-800 meters) meant he was a mini celebrity of his time.
In the 1959 Animal Olympics the biggest drama occurred in the 800 meter race, when US whippet runner Rod MacDowell, who crossed the finish line first, was disqualified for obstructing the Horace, the British competitor. Complicating matters, Britain and the United States had different rules on obstruction, and, while the final was re-run, MacDowell and two other US athletes, a badger and a stoat, refused to take part so Horace had to sprint round the track alone. He was awarded the gold after the American teams appeals were turned down.
Now preserved in his notorious sprinting pose, Horace is happily in fox heaven running, and running and running.