Despite the resemblance between An Enemy that Warns (0837.25) and study of a wolf (TU2009.39.53), the latter was not the exact model for An Enemy that Warns. That model was probably destroyed in the mold making process. Instead, An Enemy that Warns is probably from a later version of a similar wax sculpture that was finally cast in bronze. Sculptors commonly used modeling wax (a variable mixture of different waxes and oils) to create original works of art like this. Ten casts of An Enemy that Warns are estimated to have been made during Russell’s life, although 14 or more casts exist in public and private collections.

From the exhibition: Frontier to Foundry: the Making of Small Bronze Sculpture in the Gilcrease Collection, December 2014 - March 2015.
Ann Boulton Young, Associate Conservator for the Gilcrease Museum, 2014.

The wolf was probably cast separately and added to the base. The bottom is covered with sheet metal, which is partly detached.

Information given by Ann Boulton Young, Associate Conservator for the Gilcrease Museum, 2018