Possibly the greatest animalier of the 19th Century, Antoine Louis Barye (d.1875) began his training aged thirteen when he was apprenticed to Fourrier, an engraver of military equipment. He competed with success at various competitions at the Ecole des Beaux Arts before making his name at the Salon from 1827 when he started to exhibit. In 1831 he won second prize at the Salon for his Tiger devouring a Gavial. These two bronzes frequently grouped as a pair, and described as pendants in some of Barye's sale catalogues are among his most popular models. The walking lion's pose is derived from the lion relief on the July column in the Place de la Bastille: casts date from 1836, and in all, nine casts were made and examples appear in all six of Barye's sale catalogues. The walking tiger, classical in inspiration, was exhibited at the salon of 1836 and arguably has better defined musculature than the walking lion.