Rufus the Beagle

Artisan: Annie Willis
Date: about 1997
Inscriptions: signed ‘Annie Willis’ and with monogram (on the undersides of Rufus’s back paws) and further inscribed ‘Mem. B.T.C.’ (also on the underside of the back paw)
Dimensions: 60 x 60 x 50 mm. / 2 ½ x 2 ½ x 1 ¼ inches
Inventory number: 2022.057
Intended Room: Here, there and everywhere!
Category: Animals

Provenance: Probably commissioned or purchased from Annie Willis in the mid-to-late 1990s by a private collector in North Wales (‘a stickler for buying only the best artisan pieces’). Bought from the collector by Claire Lees, Matlock, Derbyshire; and purchased from Claire by us via eBay in 2022.

I have never seen a doggier miniature dog than Rufus. He is Charles’s loyal shadow, following at his master’s heels around the house, and can often be found curled up in the Library with Beau. Rufus is one of Annie Willis’s creations and just perfect in every detail, except that the black has worn off the outsides of his lovely floppy pink felt ears.

I’m curious about the inscription ‘Mem. B.T.C.’ on Rufus’s paw. It doesn’t mean anything to me. Does it ring a bell with anyone else? Could it refer to some IGMA Guild show or gathering?