Page from Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama): text page

The calligrapher employed a fine-point reed pen to produce uniform, curved strokes characteristic of Persian Nastaʿlīq script. The ink is a deep black, applied with consistent pressure, while the thin red border—likely a pigment wash—serves both decorative and structural purposes, delineating the text block.

The folio originates from an illuminated manuscript tradition that flourished in the Persianate world between the 14th and 17th centuries. Although the exact date and place of production are not specified, the paper’s patina and the style of the script suggest a pre‑modern origin, later entering a Western collection through the art market.

*Tales of a Parrot* belongs to a broader corpus of Persian narrative literature that often employed animal narrators to convey ethical teachings. Such manuscripts were typically commissioned by elite patrons for private reading, and their production involved skilled scribes, calligraphers, and occasionally miniature painters.

Pages like this illustrate the high level of craftsmanship in Persian book arts and provide scholars with material evidence of literary transmission across the Islamic world. The folio’s preservation allows contemporary audiences to study the visual and textual conventions of historic Persian storytelling.