Prophetic Eggs
Chickens (Gallus Domestica) were first domesticated about 2,500 BC and were a valued source of both eggs and meat for the ancient Egyptians. The Greeks however viewed them as sacred to the Gods. They were a symbol of fertility to Persephone, of commerce and productivity to Hermes, and of love to Eros.
Because they belonged to the Gods, the Greeks did not slaughter and eat chickens but the eggs were highly valued. They selectively bred chickens to produce a new species, Gallus Classica, which laid larger eggs with tougher shells and because the fowls were often kept in Temples in close proximity to priests, oracles and teachers, the birds started to pick up words and sentences that were much repeated. Unlike the parrot family, chickens did not display their talent by speaking, but often a word or phrase was found on the thin membrane lining the shell of the egg.
This developed to the extent that an oracle called Apophocles made a living selling eggs containing prophecies and aphorisms. It was then just a small leap for the “chickens” to produce eggs with the message inscribed on the outside surface of the shell. It made the prophesies more accurate and of course the eggs, which by now were almost unbreakable, could be re-used.
Sir Bertram Pring, the famous eighteenth century philosopher and aesthete made an intensive study of what came to be known as ‘prophecy eggs’, and with assistance from his clerical younger brother, was able to reproduce a similar phenomenon using modern hens. His treatise, ‘The Curate and His Egg’, has been regarded as second only to Schrödinger’s cat, as a piece of brilliant, if impenetrable, extrapolation. However, the shell of the modern hen’s egg proved too fragile, and as each experiment was successfully concluded, Sir Bertram had the result cast in Plaster of Paris for posterity. He then caused copies to be carved in ivory to his exact specifications, and used them as either gift or missile, depending on who the recipient was.
These are faithful reproductions of Sir Bertram Pring’s fabled eggs. You can choose from the following:
- “
You egg me on
“ - “
You crack me up
“ - “
Be happy, get laid
“ - “
Humpty Dumpty lives
“ - On one side is the inscription, on the other is the face of Humpty Dumpty. It is cast by hand in a man made material which closely replicates ivory.
The eggs stand approximately 70mm high, by 50mm wide, but as each one is hand-made there will be slight variations in size. It is presented in one of our trademark Cabinet of Curiosities cotton bags.
Sculpted by Bernard Pearson.
Designed & made in Great Britain.
