Artwork

The suitors take the devotee’s daughter out of her tomb after breaking it open, when the physician discovers she is still alive, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Twentieth Night

The suitors take the devotee’s daughter out of her tomb after breaking it open, when the physician discovers she is still alive, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Twentieth Night is an unspecified painting by the Mughal Painting artist Unknown. It dates from 1560 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. The painting captures a dramatic episode in which three men are lifting a woman from a shattered tomb.

About this work

The story is dark: the suitors thought she was dead, but the doctor finds she’s still alive.

Three men lift a woman from a broken tomb, her body limp in a thin white shroud. The tomb’s stone lid lies cracked on the ground behind them. A doctor kneels nearby, checking her pulse.

This scene comes from a *Tuti-nama*, a book of parrot tales told to Emperor Akbar. The story is dark: the suitors thought she was dead, but the doctor finds she’s still alive. The painting shows the moment of shock—hands frozen mid-air, faces half-hidden in shadow.

To see more stories like this, look up Mughal India, court of Akbar (reigned 1556–1605).

Overview

The painting captures a dramatic episode in which three men are lifting a woman from a shattered tomb. She lies limp, swathed in a sheer white shroud, while the stone lid of the burial chamber rests cracked nearby. A physician kneels at her side, checking for signs of life, as the suitors appear startled by the possibility that she may not be dead.

Subject & Meaning

The scene is drawn from the twentieth night of the *Tuti‑nama*, a collection of parrot tales presented to Emperor Akbar. In this particular narrative, the three suitors, believing the woman to be deceased, attempt to claim her as a bride, only to discover, through the doctor’s examination, that she is still breathing. The composition emphasizes the moment of shock and the moral ambiguity of their actions.

Technique & Style

Rendered in the refined Mughal court style, the work employs delicate brushwork to suggest the translucency of the burial shroud and the texture of the broken stone lid. Subtle chiaroscuro models the figures, casting their faces in partial shadow, while the muted palette foregrounds the drama without resorting to overt coloration. The composition balances narrative clarity with a restrained, almost documentary realism.

Context

Created during the reign of Akbar (1556–1605), the painting reflects the imperial patronage of illustrated manuscripts that blended Persian literary traditions with Indian courtly aesthetics. The *Tuti‑nama* itself was a didactic collection, using fantastical stories to convey moral lessons to the emperor and his entourage, illustrating the sophisticated cultural milieu of the Mughal court.

History & Provenance

The work originates from a manuscript of the *Tuti‑nama* produced for Akbar’s library, likely within the imperial atelier of the late 16th century. Surviving copies of the text and its illustrations have been dispersed among several collections; this particular painting is now held in a museum collection that acquired it through a mid‑20th‑century acquisition of Mughal manuscript material.