Vintage Rushton Rubber Face University Of Kentucky Wildcat Plush Blue Cat Lion

Absolutely unique as can be. I have searched extensively and reached out to several Rushton experts and have not found another plush like this. Based on my research I believe it to be a custom order for the University of Kentucky's beloved mascot, the blue wildcat. It was found in the heart of Kentucky, making it all the more likely. Rushton appears to have done some custom college pieces over the years, and this plush seems to be a mix of the leopard and panther plushes that Rushton produced in the 1950s and 1960s along with the rubber mouth that was featured on their Trophy Heads big cat pieces from the same time. Unique and likely one a kind still in circulation. It stands approximately 18 inches tall and about 16 inches from the tail to the paws that sit on the ground. Has a few small dirt marks, tips of ears are lightly off white and a few small spots. There is some very early separation of the seams in the crooks of the legs, but no loss of any filling. Overall incredible condition. Paint on the rubber mouth is absolutely lovely and the color of the plush itself is very bright.