The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 18, 2025

The creatures of the sea are asked by the king of the Ocean to take a message to the Brahman, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eleventh Night

c. 1560

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: 7.3 x 10.1 cm (2 7/8 x 4 in.)
Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry 1962.279.89.b
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

The sea dragon is chief of the many species under the Ocean King’s command.

Description

The creatures of the sea, by turn, refuse to convey the king of the ocean’s acceptance of the wedding invitation to the Brahman. The sea dragon in the upper right is concerned that he will frighten people, so he volunteered the whale. The whale said that he has no legs to walk on land, so volunteered the turtle. The turtle said he would be too slow and would never make it on time. The crab feared he would not be taken seriously, and the crocodile said that he is too rough and vulgar for the job. The frog agreed to go.
  • ?–1959
    Estate of Breckinridge Long [1881–1958], Bowie, MD
    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
    1 Samuel 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.
  • Chandra, Pramod, and Daniel J. Ehnbom. The Cleveland Tuti-Nama Manuscript and the Origins of Mughal Painting. [Cleveland]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1976. pp. 79, 110
    Nakhshabī, Z̤iyāʼ al-Dīn, and Muhammed Ahmed Simsar. Tales of a Parrot = The Cleveland Museum of Art's Ṭūṭīnāma. Cleveland: The Museum, 1978. pp. 82-89
  • Animal Fables of Mughal India. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 12-August 29, 2021).
  • {{cite web|title=The creatures of the sea are asked by the king of the Ocean to take a message to the Brahman, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eleventh Night|url=false|author=|year=c. 1560|access-date=18 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1962.279.89.b