Greyhound or Whippet

Cast iron
Ca. 1850-1860
4’ 4” long

This was a popular dog figure in America from the mid to late nineteenth century. American artist, Horatio Greenough (1805-1852) made a marble statue of his beloved greyhound called Arno, in 1838, which may have served as the inspiration for the creation of this cast iron garden statue. Similar pieces were found in most iron catalogs of the period. The style appears in the 1853 Robert Wood & Company Catalogue as product “I.” It also appears as No. 78 [3ft. 2 in.] in the 1858 Jane, Beebe & Company Catalogue. This is one of two known greyhound statues surviving from the estate [1, 2].

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[1] Israel, Barbara Antique Garden Ornament: Two Centuries of American Taste. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1999.
[2] Grissom, Carol A. Zinc Sculpture in America: 1850-1950. Newark: University of Delaware Press, 2009.