Artwork
The snake, hidden in a basket of flowers, reveals himself to the Raja who has just sent away his wife, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Forty-third Night
The snake, hidden in a basket of flowers, reveals himself to the Raja who has just sent away his wife, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Forty-third Night is an unspecified painting. It dates from 1560 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
About this work
Overview
The work depicts a well‑dressed man reclining on a plush seat, his head supported by his hand, while a woman in patterned attire stands nearby holding a fan. A snake emerges from a basket of flowers on the floor, its coil winding toward the man's feet. The interior is richly decorated with ornate carpets, gold detailing, and arched windows framed in red‑and‑blue motifs.
Subject & Meaning
The scene illustrates a moment from the forty‑third night of the *Tuti‑nama* (Tales of a Parrot), a narrative in which a snake reveals itself to a raja after he has dismissed his wife. The juxtaposition of the serpent with the luxurious setting underscores themes of deception, hidden danger, and the moral lessons conveyed through animal characters in the literary tradition.
Technique & Style
Executed in the miniature painting tradition of Persian and Indian manuscripts, the composition employs vivid pigments and intricate patterning.
Executed in the miniature painting tradition of Persian and Indian manuscripts, the composition employs vivid pigments and intricate patterning. Fine brushwork renders the textiles and architectural elements with precise detail, while gold leaf accents enhance the opulent atmosphere. The use of bright, contrasting colors and delicate line work reflects the aesthetic conventions of courtly illustration.
Context
The painting originates from a manuscript of the *Tuti‑nama*, a collection of moral tales popular across the Islamic world from the 14th to 18th centuries. Such illustrated books were commissioned by elite patrons for private enjoyment and instruction. The work’s visual language aligns with the cross‑cultural artistic exchanges between Persia and the Indian subcontinent during the Mughal period.
Artist & collection
The parrot laughs on hearing the Raja of Ujjain’s wife admire her beauty in a mirror, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot: Forty-sixth Night
The farmer, father of the son with the deceitful wife, steals away with her anklet while she is in bed with her lover, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eighth Night
Shahr-Arai and her lover dallying on a bed beneath which is concealed her husband, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Fortieth Night
The deceitful wife persuades her husband to sleep in the same place where she had previously slept with her lover, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eighth Night
The parrot addresses Khujasta at the beginning of the forty-third night, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot)
Kamjuy, the wife of the Raja, averts her face from the fishes, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Twenty-third Night
The eldest brother explains the reason for his youthful appearance, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Forty-ninth Night
Shahr-Arai’s husband bends to kiss his wife who feigns sleep, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Fortieth Night
The king dreams of a lady, the personification of wealth, departing from him on account of his purchasing a bowl and a staff from a yogi, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Thirty-sixth Night
In order to falsely implicate her husband, Hamnaz places a knife by his side and lets the blood dripping from her nose stain his clothes, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Twenty-fifth Night