Ancilotto, King of Provino
| "Ancilotto, King of Provino" | |
|---|---|
| Short story by Giovanni Francesco Straparola | |
| Country | Italy |
| Language | Italian |
| Genre(s) | Fairy tale |
| Publication | |
| Published in | The Facetious Nights of Straparola |
Ancilotto, King of Provino is an Italian literary fairy tale written by Giovanni Francesco Straparola in The Facetious Nights of Straparola.
It is Aarne-Thompson-Uther type 707: "The Three Golden Children" or "the dancing water, the singing apple, and the speaking bird". It is the oldest known variant of this tale, and influenced Madame d'Aulnoy's Princess Belle-Etoile. A variant of this tale appears in Antoine Galland's Arabian Nights collection, but no Arab manuscript exists, and Galland, reporting an oral source, may also have been influenced by this version. It spread to appear as The Three Little Birds in the Brothers Grimm's collection.