"Untrained Parakeet" Sculpture, King Street

Untrained Parakeet Sculpture, King Street, George Town, Penang (30 June 2012)


Untrained Parakeet (GPS: 5.41782, 100.33985) is a sculpture erected on King Street, at the junction with China Street, within the core zone of the George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site, Penang.

King Street is one of the streets within Little India. In the old days, Indian fortune tellers used green parakeets to tell a person's fortune. Green parakeets, commonly known as the Indian Ringneck Parrot (Psittacula krameri), are common throughout India and is still commonly used for that purpose there.

In the caricature by cartoonist Tang Mun Kian, the parakeet flies away as soon as it is release, providing an indication that the person's fortune has petered.

The "Untrained Parakeet" Sculpture is on the Map of King Street, Penang

List of Steel-Rod Sculptures by Tang Mun Kian, Marking George Town Sculptures and Penang Street Art