Attribution of unknown works of a taxidermist P.S. Mishchenko from the collection of the Sverdlovsk regional museum of local lore

The work represents an experience in attribution of subjects of taxidermy art by an archive photograph of the end of the 19th century and by indirect characters. Important characters are underlined. Preservation state of the stuffed leopard Panthera pardus L. in a dynamic pose and a process of its restoration are described, together with a stuffed Siberian tiger Panthera tigris altaica, and also one more leopard Panthera pardus L. in a static pose. Processes of preparation of stuffed animals by wire-wrap and sewing methods, characteristic of the second half of the 19th century are briefly described. Overlapping of images of restored stuffed animals with the archive photograph of 1896, made with the use of Adobe Photoshop CS5.1 software, resulted in the following. The original stand in the shape of a thick branch under the leopard coincides with the shape of this branch in restored specimen. Traces of lost twigs under the left fore paw and between hind paws are visible in a modern photograph. On the right side, the stand is shortened. Comparison of poses of the stuffed leopard demonstrates coincidence of general body contours, position of limbs, and their attachment. The shape of the tail is changed, because, by contrast to other body parts, it contains a wire and can be easily bend. In the archive photograph, the stuffed animal is attached to the wall. After restoration, the exhibit is situated on the floor, because the stuffed animal was received for restoration on a floor stand. Creative biography of a Russian taxidermist P.S. Mishchenko, the author of these stuffed animals, is represented. The history of arrival of stuffed large predatory mammals in the Sverdlovsk Regional Museum of Local Lore is described. An information on stuffed animals made by P.S. Mishchenko and situated in other Russian museums is provided. As a result of our work, the authorship, place, and time of creation of stuffed leopard and Siberian tiger was established: “P.S. Mishchenko Stuffed Animals Workshop”, Bolshaya Konyushennaya Ul., 1-8, Saint-Petersburg, 1882–1896.