Figure:Animal Trainer / Lion Tamer

At the turn of the century, Philadelphia toy maker A. Schoenhut seized upon the circus mania that had spread across the nation, producing miniature versions of the beloved circus performers and animals. Called the Humpty Dumpty Circus-a name inspired by a popular play of the time-the toy line became an immediate success. It featured ten core performers, over thirty different animals, and a wide variety of accessories, ranging from simple props like chairs and ladders to elaborate, three-dimensional canvas tents.

All of the Schoenhut circus performers have similar characteristics, including wooden or bisque heads, painted features, "crab" hands that could hold or support props, and jointed wooden bodies held together with elastic. This figure, the animal trainer or lion tamer, first appeared in Schoenhut catalogs around 1906. Garbed in the style of a Turkish soldier, a common look for actual lion tamers of the time, the figure sports a felt coat, tall black boots, and a fez type hat.