Munito, the Wonderful Dog

JAN BONDESON recalls the career of a most accomplished dog, and welcomes a new book about this clever canine.

In late May 1817, there was a series of advertisements in the London newspapers that cannot have pleased the exhibitors of ‘learned pigs’ and other performing animals, since they announced that a formidable competitor had set foot, or rather paw, in the Metropolis:

“The Celebrated Dog Munito. Signor Castelli having just arrived from Paris, begs leave to inform the Nobility and Gentry, that he intends to EXHIBIT the EXTRAORDINARY FEATS of his WONDERFUL DOG MUNITO at Saville-House, Leicester-Square; who will play at cards, write, and cast accounts with the most astounding accuracy.”

Munito was an instant success with Londoners, although the shows, set at two and four on all weekday afternoons, cost as much as three shillings. Later in 1817, the dog-trainer Signor Castelli had to rent a larger exhibition room, at 23 New Bond Street, since their old accommodation in Leicester Square had proved far too small for the throng of people wanting to see Munito perform. In an exhibition poster, Castelli could boast that both the Prince Regent and the Duke of York, and a great number of the Nobility, had already beheld the Wonderful Dog with astonishment and the most unbounded applause.

Originally hailing from Milan, Munito had made his debut in Paris in early 1817, taking up residence near the entrance of the Cour des Fontaines. In the evenings, Signor Castelli was always available if some wealthy gentleman wanted to entertain his guests with a private dogshow to enliven a party. Later, Munito performed at the Cabinet d’Illusions near the Palais Royal. According to an early exhibition pamphlet, the Wonderful Dog was visited by many scholars and journalists, and was the subject of conversation in many salons. It was hoped that seeing Munito perform would stimulate the ambition of the indolent children of Paris; surely it would injure their amour propre to be outclassed in spelling and mathematics by a dog! The Parisians were particularly fascinated by Munito’s skills at dominoes. They bet bonbons or cakes in their games against the Wonderful Dog; a nobleman bet five louis d’or instead and lost them all. In 1820, the Wonderful Dog made an extended tour of France. In 1821 and 1822, Munito toured Germany, visiting Munich, Berlin and Augsburg among other places, before returning to Strasbourg in October 1822. In early 1824, he was performing in Mannheim before going to the Hague. But for several years thereafter, there are no records of the original Wonderful Dog.

In early 1827, Munito resurfaced in Paris after several years away from the limelight. He was advertised as the same celebrated dog that had appeared all over Europe for more than 10 years. But an engraving shows a startling development: Munito is no longer the rather large, muscular dog that had been performing in Paris and London a decade earlier, but a small poodle! Clearly Signor Castelli had trained another dog to take the place of the original performer. It would have been embarrassing for him if some sarcastic Frenchman had come up to him and pointed out that his dog must be wonderful indeed to have shrunk in size in such a remarkable manner since his previous visit to Paris. But there is no record of any such untoward incident; in fact, the French nation once more took Munito to their hearts, with extensive tours following. Later in 1827, Munito toured Germany, before going to St Petersburg. In April 1830, he came to Stockholm, where the success story continued. In his Gamla Stockholm, August Strindberg wrote that “a poodledog named Munito was very much noted for his great cleverness and unsurpassed skill in performing.” This dog’s career appears to have gone on until late 1830, with a third Munito taking over from that date until 1836, and a fourth of that name surfacing at Hobart Town, Tasmania, in 1842.

Although Munito was mentioned in the late Ricky Jay’s Journal of Anomalies, and more thoroughly discussed in my 2011 book Amazing Dogs, it is not until 2021 that the Wonderful Dog has found his proper biographer: the French historian M Thibault Ternon, who has published the 147-page book Munito, Le Chien Savant, covering all aspects of the Wonderful Dog and his remarkable pan-European career. It is illustrated throughout in full colour, with many images emanating from the valuable collections of the Bibliothèque Nationale. There is a supplement chronicling the endless travels through Europe of the three Munitos, which unaccountably does not mention the little-known Hobart Town Munito of 1842-1847. Nicely produced and exhibiting impeccable scholarship, the book belongs in the library of every francophile fortean with an interest in performing animals. Since the first edition is limited to a mere 100 copies, it will also be of interest to the book collecting fraternity.

Munito, Le Chien Savant is only available from le cabinet dillusions. fr and costs 45 Euros plus shipping. JAN BONDESON is a retired senior lecturer and consultant physician at Cardiff University. He is a regular contributor to FT and the author of many books on fortean subjects. His latest book is Murder Houses of Edinburgh (2020).