Charles Dickens’s paper knife

Charles Dickens (1812–1870) was a dog lover, but his daughter Mamie persuaded him to let her keep a cat, Williamina, who later gave birth to a litter of kittens; all but one—Bob—were given away. Mamie related that “the master’s cat,” so called by the household servants for his devotion to Dickens, would “follow him about the garden like a dog, and sit with him while he wrote,” and even snuff out candles with his paw in a bid for attention from Dickens. After Bob died, his paw was fashioned into this paper knife. It is likely that the paper knife was not actively used, and that it was regarded as a decorative tribute to a beloved pet.