Antique Japanese Ivory Okimono
Eagle Hunter
Catching Rabbit
Signed: Oshi, Showa, early 20th Century
H.9.25 in.(23.5cm), W.3 in.(7.5cm), D.2.25 in.(5.5cm)
Weight: 19 OZ
Condition: thin hairlines, o.a. good

An excellent large okimono with engraved details contrasting with open areas of smooth polished ivory, depicting a falconer with an eagle after a successful hunt. The carving is fluid, with the old man’s smiling face finely modeled and engraved. He holds the caught prey in his left hand while with his right he touches the eagle which has just perched upon his shoulder. The raptor is expressively modeled with powerful talons and a fierce gaze, folding her wings as she comes to rest. (Female birds were preferred for hunting.) Carving is nicely detailed, with distinct feathers, some of which have been restored on the left wing. The falconer wears a heavily woven hood, straw boots and simple garments tied with a sash and ornamented with embroideries in a patchwork motif, with subtle carving bringing out the quality of the material, as in the softly falling fabric at the back with its unctuous sheen. The old man probably represents the cadger, the person who provides a perch for the bird as part of a large hunting party.

The first record of falconry in Japan is reported around 720, A.D. In the late sixteenth to seventeenth centuries samurai warriors received a military manual that included a section on falconry.

Private Collection