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The goldsmith judged; the bear cubs trained by the carpenter as though they were his sons, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Third Night

Unknown

1560

unspecified

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art

Mughal Painting Renaissance Renaissance Allegory

Dominant colour

The goldsmith judged; the bear cubs trained by the carpenter as though they were his sons, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Third Night is a 1560 unspecified by Unknown, a Mughal Painting work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.

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

About this work

You see two scenes stacked like comic panels. At the top, a goldsmith and a carpenter eat dinner with their families. Below, the carpenter trains two bear cubs while a judge watches. This painting tells a story from a book called the *Tuti-nama*, or *Tales of a Parrot*. The goldsmith stole from the carpenter, so the carpenter swapped the goldsmith’s sons with bear cubs as revenge. The bears act like children, rubbing their faces on the goldsmith’s sleeves—proof they’re his sons, just changed. Look up *mughal india, court of akbar (reigned 1556–1605)* to see more paintings like this.

The story of this work

Overview

In the upper-left corner, the goldsmith and the carpenter have dinner with their wives and children. The greedy goldsmith has robbed the carpenter who, in revenge, abducts the goldsmith’s sons and replaces them with two bear cubs. Below, the bears rub their faces against the goldsmith’s sleeves, proving to the judge that they must be the man’s transformed children.