A hand-molded reproduction of an early 19th-century cat statuette from the Hermitage collection. The original was produced at the Imperial Porcelain Factory in St Petersburg soon after the Egyptian campaign of Napoleon which revived interest in Egyptian art. Since the 2nd millennium BC Egyptians believed the cat to be a divine animal, an incarnation of goddess Bastet who ruled over pleasure and joy.

Biscuit porcelain.
Height 4 3/4 in. (12.3 cm).