Unmarked Silver | Running Greyhound Figurine | Hand-Cast | Antique

The greyhound has been cast in silver, bronze and marble since antiquity — always mid-stride, always just about to disappear.

The greyhound as a subject for small decorative metalwork has a long history in European art, appearing in silver and bronze from the Renaissance onwards and enjoying particular favour during the nineteenth century, when sporting subjects dominated the decorative arts of the British and Continental upper classes. Small cast silver animals of this type were produced both as standalone cabinet pieces and as functional objects — menu card holders, knife rests, and desk ornaments among them. This figure, cast in the full-stretch gallop pose known as the double suspension — all four feet simultaneously off the ground — captures the animal at the moment of maximum extension, a pose that challenged and attracted sculptors precisely because it exists only in an instant invisible to the naked eye before the advent of photography. The casting is hand-finished throughout, with fine engraved line work describing the coat texture across the entire body.

The figure is cast in the round and modelled with considerable anatomical attention. The head is turned very slightly, with the long narrow muzzle, deep-set eye and folded rose ear of the greyhound type clearly rendered. The neck is lean and arched forward into the stride. The body is elongated and tightly muscled, with the characteristic deep chest, tucked abdomen and prominent hip bones of the breed modelled in relief beneath the surface coat texture. The coat is worked across the entire body in fine incised lines following the natural lie of the hair, varying in direction across the haunches, shoulder and ribcage to suggest movement and musculature. All four legs are extended in the full gallop position, the two forelegs reaching forward and the two hindlegs extended behind, each terminating in a well-defined paw. The tail is long, tapering and slightly curved, with fine line texture matching the body. The underside is unfinished and flat, as is typical of hand-cast pieces of this type, with the casting seam visible along the ventral surface.

The figure is in very good condition. The silver surface shows an even, lightly oxidised patina consistent with age, with no pitting, splitting or repair visible. There is some unevenness in the casting surface on the underside and inner leg areas, which is characteristic of hand production rather than damage. The piece stands firmly on its four paws on a flat surface.

• Material: Silver — tested; unmarked, no hallmarks or maker's mark present
• Period: Antique, late 19th to early 20th century
• Decoration: Hand-cast and hand-finished; fine incised line work throughout describing coat texture and musculature
• Dimensions: Length 9.7cm, width 1cm, height 3.7cm
• Weight: 36g
• Condition: Very good
• Buyer profile: Collector of antique silver animals; greyhound or sighthound enthusiast; buyer seeking a sculptural silver cabinet piece; sporting antiques collector

To freeze a greyhound at full stretch is to insist that beauty can be held — the silver says otherwise, but tries anyway.