The prince rejects the amorous advances of the king’s handmaiden, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eighth Night
Unknown Artist
c. 1560
Medium
gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
Dimensions
20.3 × 14 cm · painting only: 7.6 × 9.9 cm
Classification
Painting
Department
Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry
Accession Number
1962.279.55.b
About this artwork
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...