Collection Online as of May 28, 2023

The parrot brings a fruit from the Tree of Life to the king of Syria, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Ninth Night

c. 1560

Part of a set. See all set records

Lalu

Mughal India, court of Akbar

(reigned 1556–1605)

Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper

Painting only: 7.6 x 10.2 cm (3 x 4 in.); Overall: 20 x 14.4 cm (7 7/8 x 5 11/16 in.)

Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry 1962.279.75.b

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

Outside of this manuscript, only one other known work is attributed to the painter Lalu.

Description

A wise, green parrot perches on the hand of the king of Syria. Clutched in his beak is a small orange fruit that he plucked from a tree in the netherworld and brought back as a reward for many years of the king’s kindness. Despite being offered eternal life, the king is hesitant to eat the fruit.

Inscriptions

Inscription

lālū

Inscription Translation

(by) Lalu

Provenance

Estate of Breckenridge Long, Bowie, MD, 1959; Harry Burke Antiques, Philadelphia, PA; Bernard Brown, Milwaukee, WI;

Citations

Chandra, Pramod, and Daniel J. Ehnbom. The Cleveland Tuti-Nama Manuscript and the Origins of Mughal Painting. [Cleveland]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1976. p. 107

Chandra, Pramod, and Daniel J. Ehnbom. The Cleveland Tuti-Nama Manuscript and the Origins of Mughal Painting. [Cleveland]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1976. pp. 78, 107

Seyller, John. “Overpainting in the Cleveland T̤ūtīnāma.” Artibus Asiae 52, no. 3/4 (1992): 283-318. p. 312 www.jstor.org