The parrot addresses Khujasta at the beginning of the forty-first night, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Forty-first Night, c. 1560. Mughal India, court of Akbar (reigned 1556–1605). Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper; overall: x 14 cm (8 x 5 1/2 in.); painting only: x 10 cm (3 7/8 x 3 15/16 in.). On the forty-first of fifty-two nights, Khujasta consults Tuti the parrot for advice on how to balance her lover’s wishes with her vow of marriage. Tuti, perched atop his cage, responds by telling her a story about a donkey who was punished for singing too brazenly.

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Photo credit: © CMA/BOT / Alamy / Afripics
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