Perkeo of Heidelberg

Perkeo of Heidelberg (born Clemens Pankert, according to other sources Giovanni Clementi; 1702–1735) was a notable jester and court dwarf of Elector Palatine Charles III Philip in Heidelberg. As guardian of the Great Heidelberg Tun, he has since become an unofficial mascot of the city and region. His name, story and image have been connected with a variety of festivals, traditional songs, cultural and scientific institutions, hotels, restaurants and private companies (in and out of the region) ever since.

Pankert was apparently affected by dwarfism, possibly pseudoachondroplasia. He was born in Salurn in the County of Tyrol (present-day Salorno, South Tyrol) and originally practised as a button maker. Probably about 1718 he met with Prince Charles III Philip, who since 1712 ruled as a Habsburg governor over the lands of Tyrol and Further Austria. Philip took an interest in Pankert, and when he assumed the rule in the Electoral Palatinate, he brought him along to Heidelberg Castle (in what is today Germany) as a cup-bearer and official entertainer for the court.

In Heidelberg, he allegedly adopted the nickname “Perkeo” for his drinking habitudes, as he famously replied "perché no?" (“why not?” in Italian) many times after being asked if he wanted another glass of wine at various court events. Perkeo quickly became celebrated for massive wine consumption despite his small figure, maybe on account of diabetes insipidus. Contemporary accounts document that he regularly drank between five and eight US gallons of wine a day. Since he knew much about wine, he was also given the responsibility of looking after the castle’s wine stocks. Many found amusement in the striking contrast that tiny, funny Perkeo was in charge of the largest wine barrel in the world, the massive Heidelberg Tun, while famously having a strong love of drinking.

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