Mayor Cottontail Small French Provincial Rabbit Statue, Rust Cast Iron 27cm

A rabbit in a frock coat with a cane, raising a paw to somebody down the path.

Mayor Cottontail is a standing rabbit cast in solid iron and finished in a natural rust patina, dressed for civic business: long ears up, open frock coat over a buttoned waistcoat, cravat at the throat, breeches and boots. One paw is raised open in greeting, the other holds a walking cane. He weighs 2.35 kg, which is the difference between cast iron and the resin and magnesia pieces that copy this shape. The casting carries the fur of the ears, the seams of the coat and each button worked separately.

At 27cm he is the size of a table lamp, small enough to lift with one hand. He is built for outdoor life: the iron keeps him upright in wind, and the rust patina is a finish rather than a fault, so weather deepens him instead of wearing him out.

Why we love it

• ◆The raised paw, he is greeting somebody, which is a warmer thing for a garden figure to be doing than simply standing
• ◆The weight, 2.35 kg of cast iron, so a gust moves the border and not the mayor
• ◆The rust patina, deep amber where light catches the ears and the coat, russet in the folds, and it only improves outdoors
• ◆The ears, the fur worked all the way up, which is where most castings of a rabbit give up

How to style it

He is greeting somebody, so put him where a person would actually be arriving.

• Stand him at the foot of a step or beside a gate
• Set him at the front of a border where the planting is low
• Give him a hall console indoors with nothing else on it
• Stand him with our other storybook characters so they read as one household
• Group him with the rest of our garden sculptures

Care & Keeping

Wipe with a soft dry cloth to lift dust out of the ears and the coat folds. The rust patina is a finished surface and needs no sealing. Place a felt pad or a saucer underneath on pale stone or painted timber, and keep harsh chemical cleaners and abrasive pads away from him.

Because Mayor Cottontail is hand-finished, slight variations in patina, texture, and grain are natural and add to the unique character of each piece. Colour may also vary slightly between screens, all photography is taken in natural light.