In "The Incarnation of Krishna Muvaney" (1889, collected in Life's
Handicap, 1907),the Irish soldier Mulvaney recounts how he was in an
Indian temple in front of the image of Krishna and "I crooked my legs like
a shepherd on a china basin" and waggled his toes...
I have been looking for such a china basin; presumably Kipling had in mind
a type which was familiar to Mulvaney in his days in Dublin or presumably
England before he enlisted, say during 1840-1889, of common English china
or perhaps pottery I do not expect that he saw this in India I have looked
around the ceramics floor at the V&A ; there are rustic scenes on various
English china, especially transfer printed, eg on Spode or Derby, a
shepherd (with crook) on a plate, but not with legs crooked, this attitude
only on a figurine. Of Bowls there were not many with rural scenes, the
occasional slop bowl and one punch bowl and a porcelain saucer..
If anyone is at the Potteries Museum and Gallery, Stoke, I would be
grateful if they could look for such a piece.
Bryan Diamond
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