Official RCA Company "Nipper" Dog Lobby Statue

Item Details

An official RCA company ‘Nipper’ lobby statue. This molded plastic painted statue is larger than life and commemorates ‘Nipper’, a terrier born in England in 1884 and so named due to his tendency to nip visitor’s legs. This statue resided in the lobby of the company’s Indianapolis headquarters greeting visitors for many years. According to the Gramophone Co. publicity material, the dog, named ‘Nipper’, belonged to artist Mark Barraud (1848-1887). When Mark Barraud died, brother Francis inherited Nipper, along with a cylinder phonograph and some recordings of Mark’s voice. Francis saw that the terrier took an interest in the recorded voice of his late master and decided to paint the scene. At the request of the gramophone’s inventor the American rights to the picture were acquired by the Consolidated Talking Machine Company, renamed the Victor Talking Machine Co in 1901. Victor used the image and from 1902 all Victor records had a simplified drawing of the dog and gramophone on their record labels & machines. Magazine advertisements urged record buyers to ‘Look for the dog.’

Condition

Condition is consistent with age and display use, evidenced by some surface scratches and slight loss to finish of painted nose and ears.

Dimensions

Item #

15IND062-115