The Brahman gambler sees the daughter of the king of the jinns in a pit together with an old man and a cauldron of boiling oil, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot: Seventh Night)
Unknown Artist
c. 1560
Medium
gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
Dimensions
20.3 × 14 cm · painting only: 9.3 × 10 cm
Classification
Painting
Department
Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry
Accession Number
1962.279.47.b
About this artwork
A destitute Brahman peers into an open pit. At the bottom, he sees a beautiful woman and her elderly lover, who has stoked the fire beneath the cauldron for nearly eighty years. She gives the Brahman two gold bracelets, which he holds in each hand. The pit is represented in cross-section, allowing the viewers to see the action inside.