Artwork Page for The Parrot Addresses Khujasta at the Beginning of the Eighteenth Night, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot)

Details / Information for The Parrot Addresses Khujasta at the Beginning of the Eighteenth Night, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot)

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

c. 1560

Mughal India, court of Akbar

(reigned 1556–1605)
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Medium
gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
Measurements
Overall: 20.3 x 14 cm (8 x 5 1/2 in.); Painting only: 7.9 x 10.2 cm (3 1/8 x 4 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry 1962.279.130.b
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
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Did You Know?

The medallion pattern of Khujasta’s skirt is a convention of an earlier painting style

Description

When like a red-turbaned king the sun disappeared under the canopy in the west and like a silver-robed monarch the moon appeared on the throne in the east, Khujasta went to ask Tuti’s permission to leave.
The parrot replied that his mistress Khujasta should devote herself to her obligations of propriety, just like the three extraordinary companions of the prince. Her interest piqued, Khujasta asked Tuti to tell her about them. He then launched into a story about the benefits of loyalty and generosity that lasted all night.
A vertically oriented manuscript features black Persian calligraphy above a gum tempera and ink painting depicting a scene of a woman with tan skin gesturing up to a green parrot in a red cage. She wears an orange top and green skirt atop a vibrant pink and purple patterned floor. To our right, a blue interior contains a red patterned bed and a large, white and red oval pillow.

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

c. 1560

Mughal India, court of Akbar (reigned 1556–1605)

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