Note 19 — FLEMISH PAINTING
Reading edition
This reminds us of the old Nursery rhyme:
“Sing a song of sixpence, A pocket full of rye; Four-and-twenty blackbirds Baked in a pie. When the pie was opened, The birds began to sing; Wasn’t that a dainty dish To set before the King?”
Undoubtedly this jingle is an echo of the jokes and “pleasantries” in confectionery and pastry that were perpetrated by the Mediæval chefs.—E. S.