Mother Goose
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Mother Goose is a character that originated in children's fiction, as the imaginary author of a collection of French fairy tales and later of English nursery rhymes. She also appeared in a song, the f
The opening verse of "Old Mother Goose and the Golden Egg", from an 1860s chapbook
Mary Goose's gravestone in Granary Burying Ground in Boston, Massachusetts
Frontispiece from the first English translation, 1729
Joseph Grimaldi (right) in the role, an 1846 print by George Cruikshank
Histoires ou contes du temps passé, avec des moralités, or Contes de ma mère l'Oye, is a collection of literary fairy tales written by Charles Perrault, published in Paris on 11 January 1697. The work
Mother Goose
…pantomime tracing its roots to 1806. The term's appearance in English dates back to the early 18th century, when Charles Perrault's fairy tale collection, Contes de ma Mère l'Oye, was first translated into English as Tales of My Mother Goose. Later a compilation of English nursery rhymes, titled Mother Goose's Melody, or, Sonnets…
Title page from the first edition (1697)
17th-century portrait of Charles Perrault by Philippe Lallemand
Title page of the 1695 manuscript of Charles Perrault's Contes de ma mère l'Oye (The Morgan Library & Museum, New York)
Illustration of "Puss in Boots" from the 1695 manuscript of the Contes de ma mère l'Oye