Where were these dog pairs displayed?

Victorian households typically placed these ceramic pairs on the mantelpiece above a fireplace, arranged symmetrically to frame the hearth. They also appeared on sideboards and chests of drawers in sitting rooms, serving as cheerful domestic ornaments.

How do I identify Staffordshire spaniels?

Staffordshire spaniels are usually modelled as seated dogs facing inwards toward one another, often featuring painted chain collars and lockets. They generally employ earthenware or pottery bodies with painted patches and glazed white surfaces.

Dogs of Fo, or Chinese guardian lions, are traditional symbolic sculptures often produced in pairs to guard sacred spaces. In decorative ceramics, they appear as glazed pottery or white porcelain figures, sometimes adapted into nineteenth-century lamps.

Are these figures functional?

While most serve strictly as decorative ornaments, certain nineteenth-century examples incorporate practical elements into the design. Listings include greyhound figures configured as quill holders and inkwells for writing desks.