Quails an Bush Clover

Quails sheltering among stems of bush clover (hagi) is a well-established autumn [kacho-e](/glossary/kacho-e) subject with roots in classical Japanese poetry and painting. Kotozuka likely depicted one or two birds low in the composition, half-concealed by the arching, flower-laden stems of hagi that fill the upper register. The delicate lavender-pink blossoms would have required multiple blocks and precise registration to layer color over thin stems without muddying. Quails in autumn carry melancholic seasonal resonance in Japanese literary tradition, and the composition balances the solidity of the birds against the airy movement of the grasses, a structural tension common in bird-and-flower prints of the [shin-hanga](/glossary/shin-hanga) era.