ENGLISH, CIRCA 1810-1830

Pairs of flanking lions were prevalent across Rome in the early nineteenth century. The grand pair of Egyptian lions (Dynasty XXX, 380-342 BC) now in the Vatican Museums, made of grey granite, bear a resemblance to the present lioness in their recumbent pose and unyielding forward gaze. British Regency travellers to Rome, such as Thomas Hope and the sculptor Joseph Gott, were much inspired by these various antique representations. The lively facial expression of the lioness and thick plinth with curved sides is similar to Gott's depictions of dogs, such as his Greyhound (1827) at Lotherton Hall.