The Parrot Addresses Khujasta at the Beginning of the Sixth Night, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot)

c. 1560

The Parrot Addresses Khujasta at the Beginning of the Sixth Night, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot), c. 1560. Dasavanta (Indian). Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper; painting only: 8.9 x 10.6 cm (3 1/2 x 4 3/16 in.); overall: 20 x 14.3 cm (7 7/8 x 5 5/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry 1962.279.37.b Tuti the parrot begins to tell Khujasta the story of seven men who became enamored with the statue of a woman that came to life. A Persian inscription in the lower margin attributes this page to the painter Dasavanta. The golden carpet and soft tufts of grass are similar to those found on folio 32v, also attributed to Dasavanta. Dasavanta was a mural painter discovered by emperor Akbar, who had him trained in the royal atelier.