Peterson, Roger Tory (b. Aug. 28, 1908, Jamestown, N.Y., U.S.—d. July 28, 1996, Old Lyme, Conn.) U.S. ornithologist. He started drawing birds in high school. His Field Guide to the Birds (1934), illustrated with paintings that stressed the features that best identified a species in the field, greatly stimulated public interest in bird study in the U.S. and Europe. Many other guides followed. More responsible than any other person for fostering a widespread awareness of birds by the American public, he received such awards as the American Ornithologists’ Union’s Brewster Medal (1944) and the World Wildlife Fund’s Gold Medal (1972).
Petipa \pa-te-‘pa\, Marius (b. March 11, 1818, Marseille, Fr.—d. July 14, 1910, Gurzuf, Ukraine, Russian Empire) French-born Russian dancer and choreographer. He received his early training from his ballet-master father and was a principal dancer in France, Belgium, and Spain before joining the Imperial Theatre in St. Petersburg in 1847. There he also cre¬ ated several ballets, including The Pharaoh’s Daughter, which led to his appointment as chief choreographer in 1869. By his retirement in 1903, he had produced more than 60 ballets for the imperial theatres in St. Petersburg and Moscow—including Don Quixote (1869), La Camargo (1872), Sleeping Beauty (1890), Swan Lake (1895), and The Seasons (1900)—which formed the core of the classical Russian repertoire.
Petit \po-'te\, Roland (b. Jan. 13, 1924, Villemomble, Fr.) French dancer and choreographer. He danced with the Paris Opera Ballet (1940- 44) and then formed several companies, with which he toured Europe and the U.S. His dramatic ballets combined fantasy with elements of contemporary realism and included The Strolling Players (1945), The Young Man and Death (1946), and Carmen (1949). He choreographed dances for films in the 1950s, and he later staged revues featuring his wife, Zizi Jeanmaire. From 1973 to 1997 he was director of the Ballet de Marseille.
petit Vpe-te\ jury or trial jury Group chosen from the citizens of a district to try a question of fact at issue in a trial. Though petit juries in England and the U.S. historically have contained 12 members, there is no uniform number. Numerical requirements for a valid verdict vary (e.g., unanimity in most courts in the U.S., a majority in Scotland and Italy, two-thirds in Portugal). The petit jury is the standard jury for civil and criminal trials. It has less discretion than is often imagined. The trial judge supervises it, rules on what evidence it may view and which laws are applicable, and sometimes directs or, at the end of the trial, sets aside its verdict. See also grand jury.
petition Written instrument directed to an individual, government offi¬ cial, legislative body, or court in order to seek redress of grievances or to request a favour. In some jurisdictions, petitions brought by a sufficient number of people (represented by their signatures) are used to place a candidate on a ballot, to submit an issue to the electorate (see referendum and initiative), or to exert pressure on legislators to vote in a certain way. In the U.S., the right to petition is guaranteed by the 1st Amendment to the Constitution.
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1482 i Petition of Right ► Petrograd
Petition of Right (1628) Petition sent by Parliament to King Charles I complaining of a series of breaches of law. The petition sought recognition of four principles: no taxation without the consent of Parliament, no impris¬ onment without cause, no quartering of soldiers on subjects, and no martial law in peacetime. To continue receiving subsidies for his policies, Charles was compelled to accept the petition, but he later ignored its principles.
Petofi Vpet-ce-fe\, Sandor (b. Jan. 1, 1823, Kiskoros, Hung.—d. prob¬ ably 1856, Siberia) Hungarian poet and revolutionary. He became famous with his first poetry volume, Versek (1844). Before the revolution of 1848 he wrote poems that glowed with political passion; one of them, “Talpra magyar” (“Rise, Hungarian”), became an anthem. He disappeared in battle and was assumed dead in 1849, but archives opened in the 1980s revealed that he was marched to Siberia and died there. His works are character¬ ized by realism, humour, descriptive power, and a peculiar vigour and have a direct style adapted from national folk songs. Janos vitez (1845), an entrancing fairy tale, is his most popular epic.
Petra Vpe-tr q\ Arabic Batra Ancient city, Middle East. Located in what is now southwestern Jordan, it was the capital of the Nabataean kingdom until its defeat by the Romans in ad 106. It then became part of the Roman province of Arabia. After several centuries as a flourishing trade centre, it declined with the shifting of trade routes away from the city. It was captured by the Muslims in the 7th century. Its ruins were rediscovered in 1812 by the Swiss traveler Johann L. Burckhardt. Excavations since the mid-20th century have revealed many rock-cut monuments, including tombs with elaborate facades carved in the rose, crimson, and purple sandstone of the surrounding hills. Petra was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1985.
The Nabataean rock-cut monument of Ad-Dayr, Petra, Jordan.
BRIAN BRAKE FROM RAPHO/PHOTO RESEARCHERS-EB INC.
Petrarch Vpe-.trark, 'pe-,trark\ Italian Francesco Petrarca (b. July 20, 1304, Arezzo, Tuscany—d. July 18/19, 1374, Arqua, near Padua, Car¬ rara) Italian scholar, poet, and humanist. After 1326 he abandoned the study of law for his true interests, literature and the religious life. He took minor ecclesiastical orders and moved to Avignon, where in 1327 he first saw Laura, the idealized subject of his chaste love and of his celebrated Italian love lyrics; mainly sonnets and odes written over some 20 years, most were included in his Canzoniere or Rime (1360). The greatest scholar of his age, especially of Classical Latin, he traveled widely, visiting learned men, searching out manuscripts, and undertaking diplomatic missions. He strongly advocated the continuity between Classical culture and the Chris¬ tian message; in combining the two ideals he is considered the founder and a great representative of humanism. His Latin works, reflecting his religious and philosophical interests, include On Illustrious Men (begun c. 1337), the epic poem Africa (begun c. 1338), the autobiographical treatise Petrarch’s Secret (written 1342-58), De vita solitaria (1345-47; “The Life of Soli¬ tude”), and Epistolae metricae (begun c. 1345; “Metrical Letters”). After 1367 he lived in and near Padua. His influence on European literature was enormous and lasting, and his deep consciousness of the Classical past as a source of literary and philosophical meaning for the present was of great importance in paving the way for the Renaissance.
petrel Any of numerous seabirds (order Procellariiformes, particularly family Procellariidae), including 24 species (genera Pterodroma and Bul- weria ) called gadfly petrels because of their fluttering flight. Most are dark above and light below, with long wings and a short, wedge-shaped tail. They nest in colonies on tropical and subtropical islands. Both parents tend the single chick until it is almost fully fledged. During the nonbreed¬ ing season, petrels roam the open ocean, eating squid and small fishes. Species in the family Pelecanoididae are called diving petrels. See also FULMAR, SHEARWATER, STORM PETREL.
Petrie Vpe-treV Sir (William Matthew) Flinders (b. June 3, 1853, Charlton, near Greenwich, London, Eng.—d. July 28, 1942, Jerusalem) British archaeologist who made valuable contributions to the techniques of excavation and dating. During excavations in Egypt in the mid 1880s Petrie developed a sequence dating method, based on a comparison of potsherds at various levels, that made possible the reconstruction of ancient history from material remains. His excavations, together with those of Heinrich Schliemann at Troy, marked the beginning of the exami¬ nation of successive levels of a site, rather than the previously haphazard digging. Petrie made many important discoveries in Egypt and Palestine. His Methods and Aims in Archaeology (1904) was the definitive work of its time. He taught at the University of London (1892-1933).