The cat attacks the mice which disturb the lion, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Fifteenth Night c. 1560 Part of a set. See all set records India, Mughal court, 16th century Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper Overall: 20 x 14 cm (7 7/8 x 5 1/2 in.); Painting only: 8.9 x 10.1 cm (3 1/2 x 4 in.) Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry 1962.279.115.b DID YOU KNOW? The same anonymous artist completed all three pages in the story of the lion and the mice. DESCRIPTION One day came when the cat brought one of his sons to substitute for him as guardian against the mice, so that he could have some time away to visit his other children. That night the young cat killed all of the mice, as shown in this painting, after which the lion had no need for a cat anymore and relieved him of his position as Magistrate of the Court. The text reads: "The cat said to his son, ‘The spark of this calamity was set by you, and the robe of this disaster was tailored by you. If you had not annihilated the mice and had not entirely relieved the lion’s heart of his grief, he would not have dismissed me.’ The young cat was filled with remorse for having killed the mice." By the time the parrot finished telling the story, daybreak came and it was too late for Khujasta to rendezvous with her lover under the cover of darkness. PROVENANCE Estate of Breckenridge Long, Bowie, MD, 1959; Harry Burke Antiques, Philadelphia, PA; Bernard Brown, Milwaukee, WI; CITATIONS Nakhshabī, Z̤iyāʼ al-Dīn, and Muhammed Ahmed Simsar. Tales of a Parrot = The Cleveland Museum of Art's Ṭūṭīnāma. Cleveland: The Museum, 1978. Trans. pp. 107-111 EXHIBITION HISTORY Main Asian Rotation (Gallery 245); July 2, 2014 - January 5, 2015.