Artwork
Page from Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama): text page
Page from Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama): text page is an unspecified painting. It dates from 1560 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. This object is a single folio from the illustrated manuscript known as Tuti‑nama (Tales of a Parrot).
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The page portrays a narrative scene from the Tuti-nama, a Persian collection of moral tales, featuring a parrot as a symbolic moral guide.
The page portrays a narrative scene from the Tuti-nama, a Persian collection of moral tales, featuring a parrot as a symbolic moral guide. The parrot, rendered in miniature format, embodies wisdom and didactic counsel, reflecting the didactic purpose of the text. The scene originates from the Mughal imperial atelier, where Persian literary motifs merged with Indian artistic conventions, illustrating cross-cultural storytelling in 16th-century court culture.
The miniature combines intricate calligraphic text with vivid figural illustration, emphasizing the didactic function of visual storytelling in Mughal manuscript production. Its creation in the Mughal Empire underscores the transmission of Persian literary themes into South Asian visual culture.
The work is housed in the Cleveland Museum of Art, which documents it as part of its collection of Indian miniature paintings, preserving its role as a tangible artifact of cross-cultural exchange in early modern manuscript traditions.
History & Provenance
The text page from the Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama) was produced in the Mughal Empire around 1560, as indicated by its inception date of 1560‑01‑01. The work is attributed to an unknown artist and bears the accession number 1962.279.52.a. It entered the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it is currently housed. Earlier provenance, including any commission or intermediate owners, is not recorded in the available sources.
The text page from the Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama) is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. The institution identifies the work with the accession number 1962.279.52.a. Created in 1560 within the Mughal Empire, the piece is classified as a painting by an unknown artist.
The provided sources confirm its location and inventory details but do not contain specific records regarding its exhibition history.
Overview
This object is a single folio from the illustrated manuscript known as Tuti‑nama (Tales of a Parrot). The page consists of dense black ink Arabic calligraphy, arranged in tightly packed, flowing lines. Thin blue bands frame certain lines, and occasional blue‑highlighted words function as visual cues, resembling arrows that draw the eye to related passages below.
Technique & Style
The calligrapher employed a meticulous hand, using a reed pen to produce smooth, curved strokes characteristic of classical Arabic script. The integration of narrow blue borders and colored annotations reflects a decorative practice intended to enhance readability and aesthetic appeal without detracting from the primary black text.
Context
Tuti‑nama belongs to a genre of didactic literature that blends entertainment with ethical instruction, popular across the Middle East from the 12th to the 16th centuries. Such manuscripts were often copied by hand for elite patrons, indicating the cultural value placed on literary and artistic craftsmanship.
Legacy
Pages like this illustrate the interplay of text and ornamentation in pre‑modern Islamic book arts, informing contemporary scholarship on manuscript production, calligraphic styles, and the transmission of folklore across regions and centuries.
Artist & collection
- Page from Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama): text page
Page from Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama): text page
Page from Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama): text page
Page from Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama): text page
Page from Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama): text page
Page from Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama): text page
Page from Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama): text page
