Ornamental Fowl in and beside a Pond in a Park, with a Peacock in Flight

Melchior de Hondecoeter (Utrecht 1636 – Amsterdam 1695). Oil painting on canvas, Ornamental Fowl in and beside a Pond in a Park, with a Peacock in Flight, by Melchior de Hondecoeter (Utrecht 1636 – Amsterdam 1695), signed and dated: M d Hondecoeter / Ao 1679. A view of a formal garden with a classical building to the right, starting to fall into decay, and a fountain to the left. A peacock flies down into the centre of the composition from a tree at the right, while ducks and ducklings swim in the basin of the fountain in the foreground. Other ornamental birds strut on the ground near the basin, with a flamingo peering in from the right hand side. Dyrham, Gloucestershire (Accredited Museum)