The son of the king of Babylon sees the Brahman transformed into a woman bathing and falls in love with her, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Thirty-fifth Night

Creator Name

Cultural Context

Mughal India, court of Akbar (reigned 1556–1605)

Date

c. 1560

Source

Cleveland Museum of Art

About the work

Cleveland Museum of Art Object Description

The Brahman in the form of a woman spent many blissful days with his lover, the princess of Babylon, in the palace harem, until one day the king’s son caught sight of a beauty from a rooftop, who was actually the Brahman in the form of a woman, washing her hair. He instantly fell in love with her and began to pursue her. When the king’s daughter discovered that her brother had fallen for her lover she became distraught. She is shown here gesturing with alarm.

Work details

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Title

The son of the king of Babylon sees the Brahman transformed into a woman bathing and falls in love with her, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Thirty-fifth Night

Creator

Worktype

Painting

Cultural Context

Mughal India, court of Akbar (reigned 1556–1605)

Material

gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper

Dimensions

Overall: 20.3 x 14 cm (8 x 5 1/2 in.); Painting only: 14.5 x 10.2 cm (5 11/16 x 4 in.);
height: 0.203metre;
width: 0.14metre

Technique

Language

Date

c. 1560

Provenance

Estate of Breckinridge Long [1881–1958], Bowie, MD, ?–1959; (Harry Burke Antiques, Philadelphia, PA), 1959–1962?; (Bernard Brown Agency, Milwaukee, WI, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art. Purchased with funds from Mrs. A. Dean [Helen Wade Greene] Perry), 1959?–1962; The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH, 1962–; Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry

Style Period

Rights

CC0

Inscription

Location

Source

Cleveland Museum of Art

Subject

Topic

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The son of the king of Babylon sees the Brahman transformed into a woman bathing and falls in love with her, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Thirty-fifth Night, c. 1560, Cleveland Museum of Art. CC0.

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