Shahr-Arai’s husband bends to kiss his wife who feigns sleep, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Fortieth Night (c. 1560): Art, History and Details

Shahr-Arai’s husband bends to kiss his wife who feigns sleep, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Fortieth Night (c. 1560) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

Shahr-Arai lies peacefully across the bed after meeting with her lover. She has successfully tricked her husband into believing that the young man is an adopted brother. The foolish and gullible husband kisses Shahr-Arai in gratitude for her perceived loyalty.

Object facts

• Title: Shahr-Arai’s husband bends to kiss his wife who feigns sleep, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Fortieth Night
• Date: c. 1560
• Culture: Mughal India, court of Akbar (reigned 1556–1605)
• Type: Painting
• Technique: gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
• Dimensions: Overall: 20.3 x 14 cm (8 x 5 1/2 in.); Painting only: 9 x 10.3 cm (3 9/16 x 4 1/16 in.)
• Collection: Indian Art
• Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
• Accession number: 1962.279.261.b

A detail from the museum

The windows of the bedroom are covered by jali, screens with geometric designs which allow a breeze to enter.

Collection credit

Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry

Further reading listed by the museum

• Chandra, Pramod, and Daniel J. Ehnbom. The Cleveland Tuti-Nama Manuscript and the Origins of Mughal Painting. [Cleveland]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1976.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.