Last weekend, we stopped briefly at the local
White Stuff just before closing time because it was pouring outside. We did not stay long, but I had the time to notice (again) this mysterious stag's head, which is hanging on a wall by the changing booths. My wife reckons it's not a real one. She likes the clothes sold at White Stuff and, being vegetarian, finds
taxidermy utterly cruel. So maybe it is wishful thinking. I reckon it is a real one. I also happen to love stuffed animals and stag's heads. We grew up with one above the fireplace, my father's hunting trophy, which my mother always found tacky. Anyway, I find this stag's head interesting for another reason: what was the purpose to hang it there? What is the appeal for the customers, mostly women, of a clothes shop? Next time we go to this White Stuff, I might actually ask, although I doubt the employees know. And this would add to the mystery.
Les animaux empaillés, ce sont des peaux sur une structure sculptée/faite séparément, parfois en se servant d'une partie du squelette de l'animal (le crâne, et les pattes si c'est le cas), parfois sans rien d'autre que la peau et les défenses, alors, ce n'est pas toujours bien fait, de façon réaliste. Ça peut donner des trucs qui paraissent artificiels même si la fourrure et les bois sont réels.
ReplyDeletethat head has an awfully long snout.
ReplyDeleteThat's the damnedest looking deer I've ever seen. Doesn't even look like a deer, not a North American deer anyway. Maybe English or European deer look different.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, taxidermy is apparently make a HUGE comeback as a hobby here in Canada and the US. Perhaps you could be in the vanguard of its British revival?
I wouldn't like that looking at me in a clothing shop! Maybe there is a camera in it?
ReplyDelete