Red-billed Teal at a Pan in Heidelberg, South Africa

Philippa, Scott's wife was born and grew up in South Africa. During the couple's trip to South Africa in 1962 they visited her childhood home, Beauchamp and Scott writes in his diary: 'It looks out towards the mountain of Thaba Patchua ten miles away across rolling farm lands' (P. Scott, op. cit p. 197). The surrounding area had many pans of salt water pumped out of the new gold mines. With Thaba Patchua in the distance, the present picture was probably painted close to Philippa Scott's childhood home.