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

The miniature depicting the goldsmith judging bear cubs trained by a carpenter appears in the third night of the Tuti-nama manuscript produced in the Mughal Empire around 1560. Attribution to an unnamed artist working within the Mughal court context is documented in scholarly catalogues of the period, with the work housed in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. Its stylistic placement within Mughal miniature painting reflects broader workshop practices of narrative illustration and moral allegory in Persianate manuscript traditions.

The work illustrates a lively domestic tableau drawn from the third night of the medieval Persian collection known as the Tuti‑nama, or Tales of a Parrot. Central to the composition is an orange‑robed figure seated on an elaborately patterned rug, gesturing toward a standing companion. Adjacent, two men attend a black bear cub, handling the animal as one would a child.

Executed in vibrant pigments, the artist employs a rich palette of orange, red, and green to delineate figures, textiles, and architectural elements. Fine linear work renders the rug’s intricate motifs and the characters’ clothing, while broader washes define the white building with a red roof and the surrounding verdant foliage, creating depth through layered detail.