Puss and Boots

I took this picture at the York Castle Museum. Great place to visit by the way, it is like walking through a different time. And there was this stuffed cat in a Victorian shoemaker shop. I am a cat lover and taxidermy fascinates me. I found this sight both beautiful, with the feline with fiery fur, yet sad, as it was now a dead feline. it only struck me recently that it might have been there as an obscure reference to Puss in Boots. Although such a cat must have been useful in many shop like this one in the past, if only to chase away mice and other rodents. The way he was put on display, he looked very much alive, a nonchalant cats at home.