The Shuttered Palace
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| Persimmon Tree by Sakai Hōitsu thanks to Met Museum.org |
Author: not known but translated from the Khalian by A Gentleman
Publisher: not known, but a limited edition
Source book: Pyramids by Terry Pratchett (Discworld #7)
The Shuttered Palace is a book stored on one of the locked shelves of the Djelibeybi palace library. It was translated from the Khalian by A Gentleman, with Hand-Coloured Plates for the Connoisseur in a Strictly Limited Edition. It slightly boggles the mind if you ponder just exactly why such a book should be locked up.
King’s son Teppic was taught to pick locks by his tutor, an elderly ibis poacher, who also has other useful skills. Teppic found the book confusing but instructive.
Teppic’s half sister Ptraci calls The Shuttered Palace a sort of textbook. Her great-great-grandmother posed for a lot of the pictures. Ptraci says she’s read up to number 46, Congress of the Five Auspicious Ants. However that works, apparently it involves yogurt. There’s also the Congress of the Fox and the Persimmon.
Teppic’s friend from Assassin school, Chidder, arrives in his boat the Unnamed. Crew member Alfonz is extremely discomfited when Ptraci recognises one of his many tattoos as the Congress of the Friendly Dog and the Two Small Biscuits. This too involves yoghurt. And on Alfonz’s other arm Ptraci spots an image from 130 Days of Pseudopolis. That’s physically impossible she says dismissively.
Also mentioned in Pyramids are The Cordat, a textbook for trainee assassins;
The Book of Staying in the Pit which is a religious text in Djelibeybi in which we are told that the sun is the Eye of Yay, toiling across the sky in His endless search for his toenails; plus of course
Principles of Ideal Government and
Discourse on Historical Inevitability both by Ibid, a philosopher from Ephebe. He is a well-known authority on everything. Except for geometry. And interior decorating. And elementary logic.
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| The Persimmon Tree and the Delightful Crow by Sakai Hōitsu thanks to Modern Tokyo Times |
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