# The old man eats of the fruit of the Tree of Life, but drops dead, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Ninth Night

- By: Lalu (Indian, active mid-1500s)
- Date: c. 1560
- Medium: gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
- Classification: Painting
- Dimensions: Painting only: 11.4 x 10.2 cm (4 1/2 x 4 in.); Overall: 20.1 x 14.3 cm (7 15/16 x 5 5/8 in.)
- Culture: Mughal India, court of Akbar (reigned 1556–1605)
- Credit line: Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry
- Museum: [Cleveland Museum of Art](https://clevelandart.org/art/1962.279.78.a)
- Rights: [Public domain (CC0)](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- Picture: https://invisiblenetwork.ai/thumbs/cma/1962.279.78.a/1962.279.78.a_web.jpg
- Who can see it: Teens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

The enthroned king stares in amazement at the body of the old man. The parrot, who brought the king the fruit, sits in a cage at the center of the room. Believing the parrot to be a traitor, the king orders his execution. However, unbeknownst to the king, the fruit was actually poisoned by the bite of a venomous snake.