An eagle on a snow-laden blossoming plum tree
date: label: Date
content: 1568-1615
label: Period
content: Momoyama period
name: label: Artist
content: Soga Nichokuan
notes: label: Label
content: An eagle perches on a gnarled branch, with the shape made by its curled claw echoing that of the setting sun hanging in the hazy, ink-streaked atmosphere. As there are no white predatory bird species native to Japan, the artist likely based this composition on a model from China. He has applied darker ink to the claws, beak, and eyes, as if the essence of the raptor’s instincts is distilled into these razor-sharp surfaces.
label: Provenance
content: To 1898
label: Provenance
content: Bunkio Matsuki (1867-1940), Boston, to 1898 [1]
label: Provenance
content: From 1898 to 1919
label: Provenance
content: Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Bunkio Matsuki in 1898 [2]
label: Provenance
content: From 1920
label: Provenance
content: Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]
label: Provenance
content: Notes:
label: Provenance
content: [1] Undated folder sheet note. See Original Screen List, S.I. 97, pg. 4, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.
label: Provenance
content: [2] See note 1.
label: Provenance
content: [3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.
label: Collection
content: Freer Gallery of Art Collection
label: Exhibition History
content: Feathered Ink (August 27, 2022 to February 20, 2023)
label: Exhibition History
content: Untitled Exhibition, Japanese Screens (October 3, 1947 to November 10, 1955)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Bunkio Matsuki 松木文恭 (1867-1940) (C.L. Freer source)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)
place: label: Origin
content: Japan
topic: label: Topic
content: eagle
label: Topic
content: tree
label: Topic
content: Momoyama period (1573 - 1615)
label: Topic
content: plum blossom
label: Topic
content: Japan
label: Topic
content: Japanese Art
label: Topic
content: Charles Lang Freer collection
setName: label: Related Online Resources
content: Google Arts & Culture
label: See more items in
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Charles Lang Freer
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: F1898.475
objectType: label: Type
content: Painting
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: CC0
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: Ink and gold on paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W: 149.2 x 342.4 cm (58 3/4 x 134 13/16 in)