I Spied a Peacock with its Fiery Tail - I’ve taken the title from an anonymous nonsense rhyme which I found evocative, but the story is
inspired by an 18 th century Italian folk tale; Princess Rosette.
On the birth of Princess Rosette, a group of fairies tell her parents that she is cursed and predict that
she will cause the death of her family unless she is hidden away. The princess is locked in a tower for
eighteen years but is released by her brothers whilst her parents sail away to sea.
‘When Rosette saw the beautiful garden full of bright fireflies, she was so astonished that she could
not say a word; for till this day she had seen nothing. She looked all round on every side, walked on
for a little way and great was her astonishment when she saw a huge peacock spreading out its tail;
it seemed to her so very, very beautiful that she could not take her eyes off it. The king and the
prince coming up wished to know what was amusing her. She pointed to the peacock and asked
what it was. They told her it was a bird which sometimes was eaten. “What!” she said. “Do they dare
to kill such a beautiful bird and eat it? I declare that I shall never marry anyone but the King of the
Peacocks, and when I am their queen I shall let nobody eat them.”
Acrylic on Canvas
£1800
https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/1651107627/i-spied-a-peacock-with-its-fiery-tail-a?click_key=95fcf72508b36b72c202f7fbdfae3d875ea76f19%3A1651107627&click_sum=cdb94feb&ref=shop_home_active_21&frs=1