Last month, I gave my wife a set of lovely books about the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel by Barbara Garnet-Wilson and Roy A. Wilson. I highly recommend these wonderful books. Mary started with In Fact and Fancy, while I took A Tribute in Art. I cannot speak to the first book, but Mary has been enthralled. I had such an amazing time viewing the history of the breed through artistic works dating from the early 1300s.
My absolute favorite image in the book is A King Charles Spaniel by Philip Reinagle (1749-1833). This curly little blenheim has me all gooey inside. And if you are unimpressed by the image on the right, I would like to point out that the difference between it and the high quality reproduction between these pages is astonishing. I am now extremely curious to know what the original painting is actually like. In the book you can see how the artist has lovingly crafted each hair of the dog with his brush.
The stories and history contained in these pages make it a must read for any cavalier owner. It’s thrilling to find such a complete collection of cavalier art.
Now I have to wait for Mary to finish so we can switch.
Done yet?