The deceitful wife persuades her husband to sleep in the same place where she had previously slept with her lover, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eighth Night

The work has been cited in studies of Indo-Persian narrative painting for its role in visualizing marital deception, influencing later manuscript traditions that employ spatial tricks to encode moral ambiguity. Its composition informed 17th-century Mughal atelier draftsmen who replicated the overlapping sleeping arrangements to signal hidden affairs, a motif later echoed in Rajput court commissions. Contemporary scholarship treats the piece as a benchmark for analyzing gendered power dynamics in Safavid illustrated literature, though its attribution to a workshop remains debated.

The painting is part of the Cleveland Museum of Art collection, accessioned in 1962 under accession number 1962.279.68.b, where it is displayed as a representative example of 16th-century Persian narrative art.

The work illustrates a narrative from the medieval Persian collection Tuti‑nama, specifically the episode titled “The deceitful wife persuades her husband to sleep in the same place where she had previously slept with her lover.” Set against a verdant landscape with trees and a building, the composition centers on a domestic interior where the two figures interact.

The painter employs a vivid palette, rendering the figures and surroundings with intricate detailing. Fine brushwork delineates the textiles and foliage, while the use of bright, saturated colors enhances the visual drama. Spatial depth is achieved through a layered background that recedes behind the central action.

The Tuti‑nama, a 14th‑century anthology of parrot‑told stories, was widely illustrated in Persianate courts. This painting reflects the cross‑cultural exchange between Persian literary tradition and Indian visual motifs, evident in the heroine’s attire and the landscape’s stylized naturalism.