Charles Turner after C. H. Schwanfelder.

Mons, A celebrated Setter belonging to Tho.s Walker Esq. of Leeds.

20 x 15.5 inches

A hand coloured mezzotint and line engraving by Charles Turner after the painting by C. H. Schwanfelder, published in Leeds, London and York in 1810.

The devotion of an Englishman and his dog is nothing new, it goes back centuries. In the early C19th the vast majority of nobles, squires and gentlemen would have been followed around all day by a pack of working dogs. This beautiful setter is the proud property of a certain Thomas Walker of Leeds. They are presumably up on the moorland, somewhere like Ilkley, enjoying a day's shooting. Mr. Walker has had a successful shot, Mons has followed the scent and is about to retrieve the felled grouse. The expense involved in having your pet painted, enlisting the services of a master engraver like Turner and then having it printed in mezzotint, a far from easy method of engraving, all demonstrate the high esteem in which this dog was held!

Charles Henry Schwanfelder (1774-1837) was an accomplished artist who was born in Leeds where he worked all his life and eventually died. He is best remembered for his beautiful paintings of animals, particularly horses and dogs.

£1200