Here we have the Shih-Tzu, which is more closely linked to our last card than you might imagine, for it is the breed that shares more DNA with the wolf than any other single breed. The Spitz group, which includes spitzes, huskies, samoyeds, etc., when taken together as a species actually share more markers, but when analysed on an individual basis none of them have more than our cute little furry friend showing here.
This breed comes from Tibet, and it is thought to have been a cross, accidental or otherwise, between a Pekingese and a Lhasa Apso. You may think, well, if that were the case, why all the wolf markers in this one breed? And is there a little clue in the fact that the name Shih-Tzu is Mandarin Chinese for lion? But actually in Chinese the Pekingese is also known as a Lion Dog.
There is also a curious link to Buddha, through a story that when Buddha was being attacked by robbers he was guarded by a Shih-Tzu, which either turned into a lion all of its own volition, or which Buddha turned into a lion for his own protection. Once the men had gone the dog returned to his own shape, and Buddha thanked it by touching the top of its head, leaving a mark that has endured through every generation since.
Maybe because of this, the dogs were definitely favorites of the Chinese Emperors and Royal Courts, and for centuries it was forbidden to sell them, trade them, or give them away to anyone who was outside the Royal Family, let alone the Country. It was not until the late 1920s that a Lady Brownrigg, who was an Englishwoman, but somehow living in China, and perhaps even involved with the Royal Court, brought two of the dogs to England. They were so unknown outside of China that the Kennel Club classed them as Lhasa Apsos. However by 1934 things had moved along and The Shih Tzu Club of England was founded - and they actually wrote the breed standard that the Kennel Club still use today when judging these dogs in competition - though the Kennel Club did not officially recognise the breed until 1940.
The artwork for this card was painted especially by Angela Mulliner, who usually works in pastels or watercolours. Her favourite dog was not so far removed from this one, it was the Tibetan Terrier. She also wrote books, and worked on Blue Peter as an animal adviser, as well as Jackanory as an artist. She died in 2002.
The set only appears in our updated World Tobacco Issues Index, where it is catalogued as ;
GRANDEE TOP DOGS COLLECTION. Md. 89 x 52. Nd. (24) Album/wall chart issued ...P644-418
Now I thought this meant an album and a wall chart was issued and you took your pick, but I have now seen the item and it is a curious combination of both things, kind of stiff-ish paper, which is folded into four. When it is folded there is a front cover which shows the artwork from one of the cards, the English Springer Spaniel, and above that is a solid green box in which it says "GRANDEE TOP DOGS COLLECTION". When you open it out, there are empty spaces for all the cards to be fixed in, six per page, plus an additional card on the top right section, which is directly opposite the top left section where there is a decorative cartouche with the set title in again. I imagine it would have come folded, in which case the creases may have stayed and made it pretty hard to hang it straight as a wall chart.