Page 24 - September 21 2021 Important Japanese Art Christie's NYC

The eighth-century Chronicles of Japan (Nihon shoki) states
that the practice of hawking was introduced in the fourth
century, after which it became an important seasonal
activity at court. Since the Muromachi period (1392-
1573), hawking was taken over largely by the warrior elite,
who saw the bird of prey as a symbol of their own bravery
and might. So potent was this symbol that the shogun
Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542–1616) banned trade in hawks
in 1604 to emphasize his own hegemony. Imagery of
hawks in their wild habitat, in cages or tethered to stands
is prevalent on hanging scrolls, screens and sliding doors
commissioned by the samurai elite.
In China, imagery of birds of prey traces back to the
Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE). Notable paintings by
court artists of the Northern Song dynasty (960–1127)
are mentioned in the the Xuanhe Huapu, a treatise on
painting of the Xuanhe era, 1119–25. In Chinese, ying is
a homophone with the first character of “hero”, yingxiong.
An eagle on rock is a rebus for yingxiong duli, meaning
the independent spirit of a hero. A white falcon was
depicted by Giuseppe Castiglione (1688-1768) as the last
work of his prolific career in 1765. This painting is in the
collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei.

Soga Chokuan (active ca. 1596–1615).
Tethered Hawks. Japan. Momoyama period,
before 1606. The Metropolitan Museum
of Art, New York, Purchase, Mary and
James G. Wallach Foundation Gift, 2018,
2018.449.1, .2