Peafowl Through History

• The Phoenicians are believed to be the first to have imported peafowl,

and they transported them to Egypt.
• The peacock is mentioned in Greek mythology. It was the bird of Hera,
queen of the Gods. One myth told of Argus, Hera's hundred eyed giant
whose job it was to spy on Zeus and discover his trysting places. When
he discovered Zeus with the maiden Io, Zeus changed Io into a cow to
escape Hera's wrath. Hera saw through the disguise and requested the
cow as a gift, and Zeus could not refuse her. She entrusted Argus to
watch Io day and night so she could not be changed back to her true
form. Zeus then sent Hermes, messenger of the gods and god of thieves
and trickery, to recover Io. Knowing that he could not escape detection
from Argus' 100 eyes, Hermes began to play sleepy tunes on his flute
and one by one Argus' eyes closed and he fell asleep. Hermes then cut
off his head. When Hera found Argus, she removed his one-hundred
eyes and placed them on the tail of her favorite bird, the peacock.
• Peacocks are mentioned in the ancient Greek play "The Birds" by
Aristophanes.
• Back in Biblical times, peafowl were exported all over the known world
as treasure, and King Solomon brought many of them to Israel.
• In the ancient Roman civilization, peacocks were served with their own
feathers as a delicacy and were prepared in many different ways.
• The peacock is also mentioned in one of Aesop's fables. In the story, the
peacock goes to Juno (the Roman name for the goddess Hera) and
complains that the nightingale has a sweet song and he does not. Juno
replied that he has beauty
• not common and were only owned by the rich and powerful.
• The early European church looked upon the peacock as a religious
symbol.
• The peacock has been and still is held sacred by certain Indian groups.
It became the official national bird of India in 1963 and is protected by
law in its native habitat.
• Although held in high honor in many societies, in certain cultures
peacocks have been associated with evil. Their "tail" feathers have been
called evil eyes. In these cultures it is considered bad luck to keep these
feathers in the home, however they can be safely kept outside.
• In folk art, peacocks are often painted looking backwards at their tails.
Because these feathers are renewed each year, this is considered a
symbol for renewal. Cultures around the world often pair parrots,
peacocks, and doves as focal points in Tree of Life designs.
• Although I feel that peafowl in general are often overlooked and under
appreciated in today's society, you can just turn on the television to
NBC and watch the "peacock network" to find one example of them in
modern culture.

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This page last modified on Thursday, June 6th, 2002

Amy's Peacock Paradise is © Amy Miller 2000-2002