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The wounded monkey bites the hand of the prince, his chessmate, in the presence of guests, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Fifth Night

Daswanth

1560

unspecified

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art

Mughal Painting Renaissance Renaissance Allegory

Dominant colour

The wounded monkey bites the hand of the prince, his chessmate, in the presence of guests, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Fifth Night is a 1560 unspecified by Daswanth, a Mughal Painting work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.

Who painted this?: Daswanth
When & what style?: 1560 · Mughal Painting
Where can I see it?: Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

A monkey in a red coat bites a prince’s hand while nobles gasp. The prince just slapped the monkey for a bad joke. Servants chop meat in the corner, ignoring the chaos. This tiny painting was part of a book of parrot tales meant to teach lessons. The story warns that friendships across species—like a monkey and a prince—can turn sour fast. The artist worked in Emperor Akbar’s court, where painters mixed Persian and Indian styles. To see more art from this time, look up *mughal india, court of akbar (reigned 1556–1605)*.

The story of this work

Overview

This painting depicts a scene from the cautionary tale the mother parrot tells her young to warn them that interspecies friendships, like theirs with the fox cubs, are a bad idea. She tells them that there once was a monkey who could play chess, and he enjoyed many games with a prince. When the prince invited dignitaries for a party, the monkey made a bad joke, the prince slapped him, and the monkey bit him in return. At the left, food is prepared as the guests look on in astonishment. An inscription at the bottom of the page names the artist, who went on to become one of the most celebrated…