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The prince rejects the amorous advances of the king’s handmaiden, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eighth Night
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About this work
Once the handmaiden got the prince to her rooms, she suggested they have an affair and professed her secret feelings for him. He rebuffed her in silence and departed, disgusted. Insulted and afraid of what the prince might tell the king, she accused the prince of having attempted to rape her. The king then sentenced the prince to death. The handmaiden wears an Indian sari, consisting of an orange printed wrapped skirt secured with a sash, a short red blouse, and a long diaphanous scarf worn over her head. The prince is dressed in the Central Asian tunic and pants customarily worn by the Mughals.
Cleveland Museum of Art’s own descriptionCredit lineThe prince rejects the amorous advances of the king’s handmaiden, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eighth Night, c. 1560. Mughal India, court of Akbar (reigned 1556–1605). Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper; overall: 20.3 x 14 cm (8 x 5 1/2 in.); painting only: 7.6 x 9.9 cm (3 x 3 7/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry, 1962.279.55.b
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