Page from Tales of a Parrot (Tuti-nama): text page, c. 1560. The text of this manuscript is written in the Persian language using a clear form of the Arabic script called naskh. On this page the parrot is feigning concern that Khujasta's lover might not be as highborn as he claims to be. The prose is interrupted with lines of verse written in the gold-outlined boxes and introduced in blue with the word qate, meaning cut, as though the verse is cutting into the story.

---

Size: 3377px × 5179px
Photo credit: © Heritage Images / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: 1556-1605, 16th, akbar, art, century, cleveland, court, gold, heritage, india, ink, mughal, museum, painting, paper, reign, unknown