Collection Online as of September 29, 2023

The astrologer predicts a calamity for the newly born prince in his thirteenth year, but one which he would be able to overcome, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eighth Night

c. 1560

Part of a set. See all set records

Banavari 1

(Indian, active 1550s-1590s)

Mughal India, court of Akbar

(reigned 1556–1605)

Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper

Overall: 20.3 x 14 cm (8 x 5 1/2 in.); Painting only: 6.3 x 9.9 cm (2 1/2 x 3 7/8 in.)

Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry 1962.279.52.b

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

The bearded astrologer has a chart with calculations on the carpet in front of him.

Description

The parrot’s tale on the eighth night begins with a king in India who finally had a son late in life. The painting depicts the king enthroned, gesturing to the documents of an astrologer who has predicted that the child will undergo severe hardship in his 13th year, but that he will overcome them. The infant prince is held in the arms of a woman kneeling at the left. Female musicians provide accompaniment to the scene. The flat red background, drawn from indigenous Indian painting traditions, visually connotes the emotionally charged quality of this moment for the king.

Provenance

?–1959

Estate of Breckinridge Long [1881–1958], Bowie, MD ¹

1959–1962?

(Harry Burke Antiques, Philadelphia, PA)

1959?–1962

(Bernard Brown Agency, Milwaukee, WI, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art. Purchased with funds from Mrs. A. Dean [Helen Wade Greene] Perry)

1962–

The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Provenance Footnotes

¹Samuel Miller Breckinridge Long (May 16, 1881–September 26, 1958) was an American diplomat and politician, who served in the administrations of Presidents Woodrow Wilson and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Long is largely remembered for his obstructionist role as the Assistant Secretary of State responsible for granting refugee visas during World War II. His interests included the collection of antiques, paintings and American ship models. He maintained a stable of Thoroughbred race horses and was a director of the Laurel Park Racecourse in Laurel, Maryland, and he enjoyed fox hunting, fishing, and sailing.

Citations

Chandra, Pramod, and Daniel J. Ehnbom. The Cleveland Tuti-Nama Manuscript and the Origins of Mughal Painting. [Cleveland]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1976. pp. 78, 98

Seyller, John. “Overpainting in the Cleveland T̤ūtīnāma.” Artibus Asiae 52, no. 3/4 (1992): 283-318. p. 311 www.jstor.org

Exhibition history

Main Asian Rotation (Gallery 245); December 31, 2013 - June 30, 2014.