But another little fellow in there is gaining fans.

It’s a ceramic owl, made of slipware in Staffordshire, England, at the end of the 17th century. The museum’s decorative arts curator, Catherine Futter, says it’s one of the most distinctive pieces of slipware — pottery decorated with thinned potter’s clay — to be found anywhere.

The 9-inch-high figure is not just a decorative object. The owl’s body is a jug, and its head is an inverted cup, made to be removed for use.

One of the owl’s main attractions is the swirly brown, tan and yellow pattern suggesting feathers that covers its surface. The bird’s big, expressive eyes, outlined in brown dotted with light-colored slip, are another.

This holiday season the museum will begin offering reproductions of the whimsical artwork in the museum shop.

Kansas City ceramic artist Irma Starr created the slipware prototype for the 6 1/2 -inch-tall ceramic reproduction, which was manufactured in Sri Lanka.

Futter worked closely with Starr, who has created numerous reproductions and original works inspired by the museum’s Burnap Collection of British pottery, to arrive at a “meticulous” copy, museum store manager John Hamann said.

“We were looking for something that would appeal to adults and the young at heart,” he added.

A year ago the museum held a contest for museum members to name the owl. Friends of Art member Paul Christiansen of Shawnee beat out more than 270 other entries with the name Arthur — “Art” to his friends.

Holiday shoppers can purchase the reproductions of Art, priced at $100, at the Nelson-Atkins museum store on the first floor and the holiday store on the mezzanine.

Store hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.

Starr will be at the museum from 2 to 4 p.m. Friday to sign and personalize the owls.