NAME.....Kaspar, The Wooden Cat
CODE.....AN1608
ORIGIN...The Savoy Hotel, 1926
STATUS...True

Before leaving for South Africa in 1898, the diamond king Woolf Joel held a grand dinner party at the famous Savoy Hotel in London. Unfortunately, one of his guests cancelled at the last moment, which left a party of thirteen to sit at the table. A superstitious guest mentioned that it was unlucky to dine with thirteen people at the table, but everyone else just laughed it off. The dinner party was a success, and the host said his farewells before leaving the table. Again, the guest warned him of the superstition, informing the host that whoever leaves the table first will be the first person to die. Woolf Joel, obviously not a superstitious man, found this hilarious and dismissed the idea before leaving. Within a few weeks, Woolf Joel was shot dead in his office in Johannesburg.

Fearful of any future repercussions caused by the superstition, the Savoy Hotel management provided a member of staff to sit at the table with parties of thirteen. This proved to be unpopular with guests wanting to discuss private or personal matters, and so the Hotel was forced to find another solution to the problem.

In 1926, Basil Ionides was commissioned to design a three-foot high black wooden cat, which he carved out of a single piece of London plane. The cat was named Kaspar, and is provided at parties as the fourteenth guest. Kaspar has each course served to him like any other guest of the table, even having a napkin tied around his wooden neck!

Winston Churchill was so fond of Kaspar he insisted that the wooden cat should be present at every meeting of 'The Other Club', which has always been held at the Savoy Hotel. To this day, members of 'The Other Club' have respected their founding member's wish, as Kaspar has attended every fortnightly meeting since 1927.

Summary

The superstitious fear of sitting thirteen people at the table originates from Norse Mythology. The legend tells of a banquet held in Valhalla, to which twelve Gods had been invited. The evil spirit Loki gate crashed the party and killed Balder, the favourite of the Gods. As Loki brought the total number of the party up to thirteen, it is considered an unlucky number.

Also, the number thirteen is significant to Christians because it was the total number seated at the table of the Last Supper. There was Jesus and his twelve disciples, one of which was the traitor Judas, who betrayed Jesus. Judas arrived at the table last, and so was the thirteenth member to join the party.

The story of Kaspar is an intriguing part of The Savoy Hotel's rich history. After five years work and to great expense, the Savoy Hotel opened for the first time to much speculation on the 6th August 1889. This grand hotel quickly established a reputation for elegance and style, boasting unheard of features, such as full electric lighting and the unbelievable amount of 70 baths. Over the years, the guest list reads like a 'Who's who' list of celebrities, politicians, writers, poets and the cream of high society. Lavish and extravagant parties were held at the Hotel, one of which included a baby elephant as a showpiece. The story of Woolf Joel's dinner party and his untimely death would have spread rapidly across the high society world, bringing with it new fears of the superstition. The Savoy Hotel's knee jerk reaction to seat a member of staff at every table of thirteen was probably only partly to do with the superstition, and more to do with being a damage limitations exercise to restore their reputation.

For obvious reasons, parties found a member of staff sitting at their table to be intrusive. So, in 1926, Basil Ionides was commissioned to design and create Kaspar, the black wooden cat. Basil Ionides came from a family clan of Byzantine Greeks who emigrated to England around 1820, and became the patrons of London's art world in the late 19th century. Basil had established himself as an architect and an Art Deco designer, designing many of the prestigious hotels, restaurants and theatres of the time.

So, I hear you ask, why a cat? Throughout the ages, cats have played an important role in many forms of mythology and superstition, and black cats are considered to be a lucky omen.

Final Thoughts

Winston Churchill always insisted that Kaspar was a guest of 'The Other Club', whose fortnightly meetings were held in the 'Pinafore Room' at the Savoy Hotel. Churchill jointly founded the club with F.E. Smith in 1910, with the ideal of breaking down the barriers of politics, allowing politicians from across the political span to discuss and debate issues in a friendly and relaxed manner. The party was always served with exquisite cuisine, the finest wines and they smoked quality cigars; Churchill hardly missed a meeting.

In fact, rumour has it that Churchill was so fond of Kaspar, that when two mischievous RAF personnel catnapped Kaspar and flew him to Singapore during World War Two, Churchill ordered his immediate return!

Kaspar has also had a brief appearance in the harrowing novel '48, written by James Herbert.