This bronze toggle is a piece Lesley Chan has created as a signature product for Lore of Shangri-La. The story behind this product is based upon the campaign ‘the great leap forward’ from 1958 to 1960, which was introduced in china during the cultural revolution from 1966 to 1976 by the communist leader chairman Mao.  It was in the rural counties of china where people suffered from this campaign. It mandated the death of all sparrows as Mao insisted that it was sparrows that destroyed the rice fields.  Consequently, sparrows were killed off by the communist party and supporters and the rice fields were decimated nonetheless. No rice fields meant no food, which led to the deaths of up to 42 million people, predominantly from rural provinces.  

 

The sparrow is also becoming scarce in England, due to the introduction of other species of birds.

 

this piece is a homage to this understated bird: the Great sparrow.