Dead Leopard (c. 1880s–90s): Art, History and Details

Dead Leopard (c. 1880s–90s) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

Elaborate big game hunts were a prestigious pastime for the Indians and colonials under the British Raj. This trophy has been laid out for the camera so that its sharp teeth and long tail are visible.

Object facts

• Title: Dead Leopard
• Date: c. 1880s–90s
• Culture: India, 19th century
• Type: Photograph
• Technique: albumen print
• Dimensions: Image: 13.1 x 18.4 cm (5 3/16 x 7 1/4 in.); Paper: 15.1 x 20.2 cm (5 15/16 x 7 15/16 in.); Mounted: 16.1 x 21.3 cm (6 5/16 x 8 3/8 in.)
• Collection: PH - Misc. 19th Century
• Department: Photography
• Accession number: 2018.224

A detail from the museum

While the Indian leopard is now a vulnerable species, 19th-century hunters would not have worried about sustaining its population.

Collection credit

Purchase from the Karl B. Goldfield Trust

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.