- Stephen Polito
Stephen Polito (also known as Stephano, Stephani and Stephanus Polito) (1763/4–1814) was a
menagerie owner of Italian descent in GeorgianEngland .Polito was born in
Italy . He owned a menagerie which he toured around England in the late 18th century. He went into partnership with another menagerist named Miles in 1798, and "Miles and Polito's Menagerie" exhibited atSt Bartholomew's Fair in 1799. Polito's menagerie also attendedNottingham Goose Fair in 1807.Polito acquired the permanent menagerie at
Exeter Exchange in the Strand inLondon from the Pidcock family in 1810, and renamed it theRoyal Menagerie . He continued to tour in the summer, and exhibited his animals at Exeter Exchange in the winter. The menagerie at Exeter Excahgne was very popular during Polito's short period of ownership. It was visited byWilliam Wordsworth andLord Byron , and animals in his collection were painted byEdwin Landseer andJacques-Laurent Agasse . The menagerie lions, tigers, hyenas, zebras, kangaroos, and many other exotic animals, and the elephantChunee , which was shot to death in 1826.His collection was acquired by his brother, John, after his death, and then by a former employee, Edward Cross (also John's father in law). Cross continued to tour under the name "Polito's Menagerie". It is represented on
pearlware pottery from the 1830s.External links
* [http://www.virtualmuseum.info/collections/object.asp?galleryid=108&row=16&ckid=4991 Decorative pearlware plate] (c.1830), inscribed "Politos. Royal. Menagerie", attributed to Staffordshire potter
Obadiah Sherratt
* [http://www.thegalloper.com/menageries/menwwpolitostephanus.html Biography] of Stephanus Polito
* [http://www.bishopsgate.org.uk/content.asp?CategoryID=1158 Announcement of the arrival of the Royal Menagerie at the Exeter 'Change] , fromBishopsgate Institute
* [http://peopleplayuk.org.uk/collections/object.php?object_id=730&back=%2Ftimelines%2Fpuppets.php%3Fyear%3D3%26amp%3B A playbill from the menagerie (early-mid 19th century)]
* [http://www.bridgemanartondemand.com/index.cfm?event=catalogue.product&productID=111998 Interior view of Polito's Royal Menagerie, Exeter Change, Strand, 1812]Further reading
* [http://www.oxforddnb.com/index/101073320 Stephen Polito] ,
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
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