This breed comes from breed phalène (fr. – moth) and is its variation with erect ears, from which derives its name (papillon means butterfly in French). Continental spaniels were often painted on paintings old masters, mostly on portraits. Therefore, in the thirties as a model of the continental spaniel was chosen the dog from portrait of Clarissa Strozzi painted in 1542 by the Italian master Titian (Tiziano Vecellio).
