{"meta":{"version":"2.1","_links":{"self":{"href":"https://api.vam.ac.uk/v2/object/O1372606"},"collection_page":{"href":"https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1372606/"}},"images":{"_primary_thumbnail":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2025PK9179/full/!100,100/0/default.jpg","_iiif_image":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2025PK9179/","_alt_iiif_image":[],"imageResolution":"low","_images_meta":[{"assetRef":"2025PK9179","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London / courtesy of Frederick Warne  Co.","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2025PK9178","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London / courtesy of Frederick Warne  Co.","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2016JP2756","copyright":"© Frederick Warne & Co.","sensitiveImage":false}]},"see_also":null},"record":{"systemNumber":"O1372606","accessionNumber":"BP.453","objectType":"Watercolour","titles":[{"title":"'The Cowslips tall her pensioners be...'","type":""}],"summaryDescription":"Beatrix Potter (1866-1943) is one of the world's best-loved children's authors and illustrators.   She wrote the majority of the twenty-three Original Peter Rabbit Books between 1901 and 1913.  The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Frederick Warne, 1902) is her most famous and best-loved tale.  \r\n\r\nBefore publishing her own stories from 1901, Beatrix Potter illustrated fairy tales and classic texts, largely to amuse herself and to develop her technique. This colourful study of cowslips and bluebells relates as much to Potter’s botanical studies as to her illustrations, but is here accompanied by a verse from William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream mentioning the ‘gold coats’ of cowslips. Beatrix Potter deeply admired Shakespeare and memorised around six of his plays one summer as a test of her memory. \r\n","physicalDescription":"Watercolour drawing with cowslips and bluebells in a brown earthenware jug, seen against a dark background; a verse from Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' is written out below the drawing.","artistMakerPerson":[{"name":{"text":"Beatrix Potter","id":"A18000"},"association":{"text":"artist","id":"AAT25103"},"note":""}],"artistMakerOrganisations":[],"artistMakerPeople":[],"materials":[{"text":"pencil","id":"x30347"},{"text":"card","id":"x30344"},{"text":"watercolour (paint)","id":"AAT15045"}],"techniques":[{"text":"watercolour painting (technique)","id":"THES250889"},{"text":"handwriting","id":"AAT252927"}],"materialsAndTechniques":"watercolour and pencil on card","categories":[{"text":"Illustration","id":"THES48938"},{"text":"Watercolours","id":"THES277714"},{"text":"Botanical art","id":"THES277744"},{"text":"Ceramics","id":"THES48982"},{"text":"Woman Artist","id":"THES387590"}],"styles":[],"collectionCode":{"text":"PDP","id":"THES48595"},"images":["2025PK9179","2025PK9178","2016JP2756"],"imageResolution":"low","galleryLocations":[{"current":{"text":"007","id":"THES318121"},"free":"","case":"","shelf":"","box":""}],"partTypes":[[{"text":"watercolour (painting)","id":"AAT78925"}]],"contentWarnings":[{"apprise":"","note":""}],"placesOfOrigin":[],"productionDates":[{"date":{"text":"ca. 1880s-1890s","earliest":"1875-01-01","latest":"1899-12-31"},"association":{"text":"made","id":"x28654"},"note":""}],"associatedObjects":[],"creditLine":"Linder Bequest [plus object number; written on labels on the same line as the object number]","dimensions":[{"dimension":"Height","value":"208","unit":"mm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"support","note":""},{"dimension":"Width","value":"116","unit":"mm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"support","note":""}],"dimensionsNote":"","marksAndInscriptions":[{"content":"'The Cowslips tall her pensioners be: / In their gold coats spots you see: / Those be rubies, fairy favours - / Midsummer Night's Dream.'","inscriber":{"name":{"text":"","id":""},"association":{"text":"","id":""}},"date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"description":"","interpretation":"","language":"","medium":"","method":"","position":"","script":"","translation":"","transliteration":"","type":"","note":"Inscribed in pencil by the artist, below the drawing. "},{"content":"'5/5 Full size - picture only / 50'","inscriber":{"name":{"text":"","id":""},"association":{"text":"","id":""}},"date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"description":"","interpretation":"","language":"","medium":"","method":"","position":"","script":"","translation":"","transliteration":"","type":"","note":"Inscribed in pencil by the artist on the verso."},{"content":"'Original, Beatrix Potter.'","inscriber":{"name":{"text":"","id":""},"association":{"text":"","id":""}},"date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"description":"","interpretation":"","language":"","medium":"","method":"","position":"","script":"","translation":"","transliteration":"","type":"","note":"Inscribed in pencil on the verso."}],"objectHistory":"Drawn by Beatrix Potter, probably in the 1880s or 1890s. Acquired by the V&A from Leslie Linder (1904-1973) in 1973 as part of the Linder Bequest, a collection of ca. 2150 watercolours, drawings, literary manuscripts, correspondence, books, photographs, and other memorabilia associated with Beatrix Potter and her family.   ","historicalContext":"","briefDescription":"Watercolour and pencil drawing of cowslips and bluebells in a brown earthenware jug, with lines from 'A Midsummer Night's Dream', by Beatrix Potter, probably 1880s; Linder Bequest cat. no. LB.984.","bibliographicReferences":[{"reference":{"text":"Hobbs, Anne Stevenson, and Joyce Irene Whalley, eds. <u>Beatrix Potter: the V & A collection : the Leslie Linder bequest of Beatrix Potter material : watercolours, drawings, manuscripts, books, photographs and memorabilia.</u> London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1985.","id":"AUTH315806"},"details":"p.109; no.984","free":"Hobbs, Anne Stevenson, and Joyce Irene Whalley, eds. Beatrix Potter: the V & A collection: the Leslie Linder bequest of Beatrix Potter material: watercolours, drawings, manuscripts, books, photographs and memorabilia. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1985. p.109; no.984"}],"production":"","productionType":{"text":"Unique","id":"THES48864"},"contentDescription":"","contentPlaces":[],"associatedPlaces":[],"contentPerson":[],"associatedPerson":[],"contentOrganisations":[],"associatedOrganisations":[],"contentPeople":[],"associatedPeople":[],"contentEvents":[],"associatedEvents":[],"contentOthers":[{"text":"illustrations","id":"AAT15578"},{"text":"flowers","id":"x35571"},{"text":"bluebells","id":"x44099"},{"text":"cowslip","id":"x40549"},{"text":"jugs","id":"AAT45685"},{"text":"Natural History","id":"x34885"}],"contentConcepts":[],"contentLiteraryRefs":[],"galleryLabels":[{"text":"Potter admired William Shakespeare and memorised six of his plays during a single year. She copied out a verse from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act 2, Scene 1, linking a commonplace still-life of cowslips and bluebells to a scene in the play in which a fairy talks to Puck of the Fairy Queen’s courtiers, the cowslips.","date":{"text":"November 2019","earliest":"2019-11-01","latest":"2019-11-30"}}],"partNumbers":["BP.453"],"accessionNumberNum":"453","accessionNumberPrefix":"BP","accessionYear":null,"otherNumbers":[{"type":{"text":"Linder Bequest catalogue no.","id":"THES57120"},"number":"LB.984"}],"copyNumber":"","aspects":["WHOLE"],"assets":[],"recordModificationDate":"2026-09-26","recordCreationDate":"2016-11-16","availableToBook":true}}