A remarkable case of a Cornish Chough, the bird modelled in a bold and artistic manner representing one of the choughs unusual mannerisms. A large pebble internally reads ‘F. Coburn Birmingham 1908. The Cornish Chough has strong cultural connections particularly with Cornwall, where it appears on the Cornish Coat of Arms. The legend from that county says that “King Arthur did not die but was transformed into a red-billed chough”.Frederick Coburn (1840s-1914) was a taxidermist based on Holloway Head in Birmingham in the late 19th & Early 20th Century. He was also an active ornithologist who recorded many rare bird sightings throughout the late 19th century. Coburn documented the local wildlife in his 1895 work, “The Ornithology of the City of Birmingham”. His writing captured the rich natural environment of the area around the turn of the 20th century, describing it as a place with extensive woodlands, farmland, and a variety of birds like skylarks, nightingales, and ba...