Collection Online as of May 28, 2023

The wife of the son of the vizier brings the magic wooden parrot to her lover, the monk, who exchanges it for the replica, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Tenth 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: 7.4 x 10.2 cm (2 15/16 x 4 in.); Overall: 20 x 13.2 cm (7 7/8 x 5 3/16 in.)

Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry 1962.279.83.b

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

The replica parrot is denoted by its lack of pupils.

Description

The wife of the vizier’s son is having an affair with the monk, who is seated on tiger skins and wearing the blue robes of a dervish. Because he is a charlatan, he is able to recognize the deception taking place.

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. 109

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, 109

Seyller, John. “Overpainting in the Cleveland T̤ūtīnāma.” Artibus Asiae 52, no. 3/4 (1992): 283-318. p. 313 www.jstor.org