Cleveland Museum of Art

The Brahman, unable to select from the four gifts of the king of the Ocean seeks the Raja’s advice, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eleventh Night

Date: c. 1560
Medium: gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
Culture: Mughal India, court of Akbar (reigned 1556–1605)
Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Institution: Cleveland Museum of Art
Object ID: 138001

From the Cleveland Museum of Art record

Behind the Brahman, four men present gold, jewels, a robe and a horse. The enthroned Raja has offered one of these gifts to the Brahman. However, after consulting with his sons, the Brahman is unable to choose the best one and returns to the Raja in frustration. The Raja, pleased with the Brahman’s honesty, allows him to keep all four. The tree suggests a garden through the open door in the back wall.

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Provenance & credit

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Credit line: Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry
Provenance: ?–1959: Estate of Breckinridge Long [1881–1958], Bowie, MD | 1959–1962?: (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) | 1962–: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

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