Eagle on a Tree Trunk

A hawk with hooked beak and spread wings perches on the tip of a gnarled, leafless trunk, rendered in loose ink washes with touches of color. Vertical calligraphy and red seals fill the left margin, leaving the pale ground around the bird open and quiet.

Look closer: Red seal impressions sit low in the calligraphy column at the left.

Artist

Huang Shen

Date

1755

Medium

Hanging scroll; ink and color on paper

Source

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Size

1166 × 3400 px

Credit (appreciated, not required for public-domain works): The Cleveland Museum of Art, Andrew R. and Martha Holden Jennings Fund