The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs

'The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs', an illustration by JVL in Aesop's Fables, 

Jonathan Cape, 1989.

Here is the well known fable suggesting that grasping people often destroy the very thing that is of benefit to them.

The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs

A CERTAIN man had the good fortune to possess a goose that laid a golden egg every day. Dissatisfied with one egg a day, and thinking to obtain the whole treasure at once, he killed the goose, and, cutting her open, found her - just what any other goose would be!

Text: John Coker edition (p112, 1927).

Selected parallels: Babrius 123. Avianus 33. Caxton, Avianus 24.  La Fontaine 5/13. L’Estrange 1/247. Chambry 287. Perry 87. TMI D876.

The Old Man in a Tree

The Old Man in a Tree, an illustration by JVL in The Nonsense Verse of Edward Lear, 

Jonathan Cape, 1984 and reissued in 2012

The Old Man of Dunrose

The Old Man of Dunrose, an illustration by JVL in The Nonsense Verse of Edward Lear,

Jonathan Cape, 1984 and reissued in 2012.

 There was an Old Man of Dunrose;

A parrot seized hold of his nose;

When he grew melancholy, they said, 'His name's Polly,'

Which soothed that Old Man of Dunrose.

The Old Man of Pinner

The Old Man of Pinner, an illustration by JVL in The Nonsense Verse of Edward Lear, 

Jonathan Cape, 1984 and reissued in 2012.

There was an Old Man of Pinner,

As thin as a lath, if not thinner;

They dressed him in white, and roll'd him up tight,

That elastic Old Person of Pinner.

The Old Person of Wick

The Old Person of Wick, an illustration by JVL in The Nonsense Verse of Edward Lear, 

Jonathan Cape, 1984 and reissued in 2012.

The Old Man of Spithead

The Old Man of Spithead, an illustration by JVL in The Nonsense Verse of Edward Lear, 

Jonathan Cape, 1984 and reissued in 2012.

The Old Person of Rye

The Old Person of Rye, an illustration by JVL in The Nonsense Verse of Edward Lear, 

Jonathan Cape, 1984 and reissued in 2012.

This shows a grid structure I adopted for the limerick illustrations that I drew for the book.

It is essentially based on two overlapping squares of the rectangle and their diagonals.

The Old Person of Spain

The Old Person of Spain, an illustration by JVL in The Nonsense Verse of Edward Lear, 

Jonathan Cape, 1984 and reissued in 2012.

Johann Sebastien Bach

Johann Sebastien Bach, a drawing by John Vernon Lord, 1970.

'The bird is ready for dinner'

'The bird is ready for dinner', a drawing by John Vernon Lord, 1990s

The Statistics of an Educational Institution

The Statistics of an Educational Institution, a doodle by John Vernon Lord, 1990

A Centaur

A centaur, a monoprint by John Vernon Lord, 1964

Back of an alarm clock

Back of an alarm clock, a coloured mono print by John Vernon Lord, 1964.

'Man leaves his home and heritage'

'Man leaves his home and heritage', a pen and ink drawing by JVL May 1963.

A Galleon

A galleon, a mono print by JVL, 1964. 

'The Great Rain is Over'

'The Great Rain is Over' an illustration by John Vernon Lord to a poem by Mary Coleridge in
The Song That Sings the Bird; Poems for Young Children, chosen by Ruth Craft, Collins 1989.

The Old Person of China

The Old Person of China, an illustration by John Vernon Lord in 

The Nonsense Verse of Edward Lear, Jonathan Cape, 1984 and reissued in 2012.

The Young Lady of Corsica

The Young Lady of Corsica, an illustration by John Vernon Lord in 

The Nonsense Verse of Edward Lear, Jonathan Cape, 1984 and reissued 2012.

There was a Young Lady of Corsica,

Who purchased a little brown saucy-cur;

Which she fed upon ham, and hot raspberry jam,

That expensive Young Lady of Corsica.

Spiders on pebbles

Spiders on pebbles, an illustration by JVL in The Pink House, Inky Parrot Press, 2002.

'Len's or Fred's Orientated Studies'

'Len's or Fred's Orientated Studies', a notebook drawing by JVL, May 1978.