Van Amburgh and his big game cats 

Edwin Landseer created the engraving "Van Amburgh and his big game cats," depicting the famous animal trainer Isaac Van Amburgh in a cage with lions, tigers, and leopards. Landseer, a celebrated animalier, was working in a British society deeply fascinated by the exotic and the idea of conquering nature. Here, Van Amburgh is dressed in what can only be called theatrical garb, somewhere between a Roman gladiator and an exotic “native.” He stands, whip in hand, amidst the large felines, embodying a kind of imperial authority over the animal kingdom. The animals themselves are a study in power dynamics; some appear cowed, others defiant, yet all are contained, controlled by the spectacle of human dominance. It's hard not to think about the colonial implications of such imagery. These animals, sourced from distant lands, became symbols of British power and reach. The image plays into the anxieties and fantasies of the Victorian era, where control over the "natural" world mirrored the era’s political ambitions. Landseer's work invites us to consider the cultural narratives we construct around power, and who or what gets caged in the process.