Antique Copeland Parian Ware Statue of "Paul"

by Copeland after Charles Cumberworth.  

"Paul" is a character from Paul et Virginie (or Paul and Virginia) a short novel by Jacques-Henri Bernardin de Saint-Pierre, first published in 1788, set on the island of Mauritius it tells the story of two childhood friends who grow up and fall in love, they are separated and the story ends tragically as they are about to meet again.  The novel was hugely popular in France and beyond, well into the 19th century.

The figure was shown at the Great Exhibition in 1851, and is illustrated on page 150 of the Parian Phenomenon, fig 512.