Tipu Tiger. An 18th-century mechanical toy created for Ti | Honest historian
Tipu Tiger.
An 18th-century mechanical toy created for Tipu Sultan, ruler of the Principality of Mysore in India. The carved wood and painted body is an almost life-size representation of a tiger attacking a British soldier. Mechanisms inside the tiger and human bodies allow one human arm to move, mimicking the sounds of screaming from the human mouth and snarling from the tiger's mouth. In addition, a hinged flap on the side of the tiger contains the keypad of a small wind organ with 18 notes.
The tiger was created for Tipu based on his personal emblem as a tiger and expressed his hatred of his enemy, the British East India Company. The tiger was found at his summer residence after East India Company troops stormed the capital at Tipu in 1799.
The governor general, Lord Mornington, sent the tiger to Great Britain, originally intending to make it an exhibit in the Tower of London. First exhibited to the public in London in 1808 at the East India House, then at the East India Company building in London, the tiger was then moved to the Victoria and Albert Museum in 1880. The toy is now part of the permanent display in the "Imperial Courts of South India." Since its arrival in London to this day, the Tipu Tiger has been a popular attraction for the public.
