Raptor Capturing a Crane in Flight

Several raptor prints signed by or attributed to Torii Kiyomasu I and II are known to exist. Because Japanese artists did not work directly from nature, it is often difficult to identify their bird subjects. However, many prints seem to have been inspired by the images in Past and Present Writings about Falcons: The Clenched Fist (Kokon taka no sho: Nigiri kobushi), a book on falconry published in 1687.