The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of May 27, 2022

The lion returns to his territory and sees the monkey conversing with the lynx, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Twenty-ninth Night

c. 1560

Part of a set. See all set records

Mughal India, court of Akbar

(reigned 1556–1605)

Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper

Painting only: 13.9 x 10.2 cm (5 1/2 x 4 in.); Overall: 20 x 14.1 cm (7 7/8 x 5 9/16 in.)

Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry 1962.279.194.b

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

The monkey bares his teeth and gesticulates when he talks.

Description

The lion who rules the meadow returns from a journey to find that his home has been invaded by a family of lynx, who claim that they are its rightful owners. Although this painting depicts all of the animals together, in the text, the lion does not see the lynx and is easily tricked into believing they are fearsome creatures.

Provenance
Estate of Breckenridge Long, Bowie, MD, 1959; Harry Burke Antiques, Philadelphia, PA; Bernard Brown, Milwaukee, WI;
Citations
Seyller, John. “Overpainting in the Cleveland T̤ūtīnāma.” Artibus Asiae 52, no. 3/4 (1992): 283-318. p. 317 www.jstor.org
Exhibition history

Indian Miniature Rotation (Gallery 115); August 13, 2003 - February 18, 2004.

Indian Minature Rotation (Gallery 115); August 18, 2004 -

Main Gallery Rotation (Gallery 242B): April 6, 2016 -

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1962.279.194.b