European red squirrel mount under glass dome, c. 1920

A European red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) posed mid-crouch on a lichen-covered oak branch, set beneath a hand-blown glass dome on an ebonised turned base. Attributed to a small Edinburgh workshop on the basis of the base profile and the characteristic wire armature exposed at the paws.

Sciurus vulgaris is a species of least concern and is not, and has never been, CITES-listed. This specimen predates any relevant legislation and comes with a written chain of custody through three named owners since 1962. Ethical antique taxidermy, in the sense in which that phrase can mean anything: no animal was taken for the sale, and the animal that was taken was taken more than a century ago.

The glass dome has been carefully cleaned. Do not attempt to remove it without two hands and, ideally, someone in the room to catch things.