Artwork
The third suitor strikes the devotee’s daughter and thus restores her to life, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Twentieth Night
The third suitor strikes the devotee’s daughter and thus restores her to life, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Twentieth Night is an unspecified painting. It dates from 1560 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. The work illustrates a moment from the twentieth night of the Tuti‑nama, a narrative collection centered on a storytelling parrot.
About this work
Overview
The work illustrates a moment from the twentieth night of the Tuti‑nama, a narrative collection centered on a storytelling parrot. In the scene a woman lies on the ground while three men in orange, blue and purple robes surround her; one figure wields a stick and appears to strike her. The setting includes a grassy hill and a distant small building, conveying a tense, dramatic atmosphere.
Subject & Meaning
The composition captures the climax of a tale in which the third suitor, by striking the devotee’s daughter, restores her to life. The act of violence is paradoxically linked to resurrection, reflecting the story’s themes of devotion, sacrifice and the transformative power of love.
Technique & Style
Rendered in vivid pigments, the painting employs contrasting colors—blue‑gold attire for the woman against the bright robes of the men—to emphasize the central figure. The landscape is simplified, with a flat hill and minimal architectural detail, focusing attention on the human drama.
History & Provenance
This piece belongs to the larger Tuti‑nama series, a collection of illustrated scenes from the parrot’s tales. It is currently part of the Cleveland Museum of Art’s holdings, acquired as a representative example of the narrative series.
Artist & collection
The three suitors again begin to quarrel among themselves for the hand of the devotee’s daughter, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Twentieth Night
Khurshid reunited with her husband Utarid, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Thirty-second Night
The parrot addresses Khujasta at the beginning of the thirty-third night, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot)
The merchant has the hateful skull ground and put into a box, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Twenty-third Night
The deceitful wife returns to her terrace after caressing her lover, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eighth Night
The merchant’s daughter gives birth to a son as a result of eating out of the box. The clever child recognizes the false gems from true, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Twenty-third Night
The rejuvenated old man and the daughter of the king of the jinns take leave of the King of Kings, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Seventh Night
Salim and Salima return to Ayaz and Mahmuda in the sanctuary, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Thirty-third Night
The king gives his daughter in marriage to the pious man’s son, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Fifty-second Night
Page from Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama): text page
The prince sent back to the place of execution for the sixth time, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eighth Night
The prince and Nikfal are joined by Khalis and the Mukhlis who are the grateful snake and frog in human form, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eighteenth Night
Hearing her declaration of love, Ayaz falls at the feet of Mahmuda at the holy shrine. The scene is witnessed by Salim, Ayaz’s friend, and a maid, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Thirty-third Night
The king plucks fruit from the Tree of Life with his own hands and feeds it to a lady, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Ninth Night
Kaiwan sends a message of love to Khurshid, wife of his brother Utarid who is away on a journey, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Thirty-second Night