Small brown bird on a bamboo branch

A single brown songbird perches on a slender bamboo branch at the right, its head turned downward, while long bamboo leaves spread across a gold silk ground. Painted in ink and color, the composition is spare and balanced, with two red seal stamps at the lower left.

Artist

Formerly attributed to Zhao Boju (ca. 1120s-ca.1162)

Date

18th century

Medium

Ink and color on silk

Source

Smithsonian (National Museum of Asian Art)

Size

2643 × 2880 px

Credit (appreciated, not required for public-domain works): Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Asian Art