Two Dogs: a Lyme Mastiff and a Papillon

British (English) School. Oil painting on canvas, Two Dogs: Lyme Mastiff and a Papillon, British (English) School, circa 1800. A large oil painting of two dogs in a landscape with trees in the background. The largest dog is golden brown in colour and stands, alert, facing the spectator. It has broad haunches and its tail is curled upwards onto its back. It is thought to portray a Lyme Mastiff, a breed of mastiff bred by the Legh family of Lyme Park, Cheshire and which died out at the end of the nineteenth century. The second dog, which lies on the ground inbetween the legs of the mastiff, facing the spectator, has been identified as a Papillon, a breed of toy spaniel. The Papillon is white with a black patch over its left eye and a large black patch on its hindquarters. A La Ronde, Devon (Accredited Museum)