An Illustrated Mirror of Hawking

Kyōsai's fascinating publication on the ancient art of Japanese falconry, the Ehon Taka Kagami, is reproduced for the first time with full English translations. Kawanabe Kyosai (pen name Kawanabe Tôiku) is a globally celebrated 19th century Japanese artist with an astonishing reper­toire of styles and artistic themes. His wood­cut print picture book on falconry, Ehon Taka Kagami (An Illustrated Mirror of Hawking), first pub­lished in 1863, remains relatively unknown among his modern admirers. Nonetheless, the Mirror of Hawking is an invaluable record of an ancient art. Kyosai was commissioned by a retired daimyo (feudal lord) to create studies depicting traditional Japanese falconry, which may have inspired the illustrated plates of the Mirror of Hawking. He added explanatory script to caption most plates, as well as stories, poems, and songs chronicling falconry and celebrating nature. This edition provides the first proper translation of the Ehon Taka Kagami, revealing the meaning of the words accompanying each plate to non-Japanese readers. In addition to fully reprinting the original images and texts, this edition includes contextual essays and reference images that provide important background information about Kyosai, the history of Japanese falconry, and the origins of this unique publication. Distributed for The Archives of Falconry.