Owl and Crested Mynas on a Plum Branch, 14th - 16th century, Unknown Japanese, 8 5/8 ¡Ñ 20 in. (21.91 ¡Ñ 50.8 cm) (image)54 9/16 ¡Ñ 26 7/8 in. (138.59 ¡Ñ 68.26 cm) (mount, without roller)14 1/2 ¡Ñ 22 1/8 in. (36.83 ¡Ñ 56.2 cm) (mount, inner mount), Ink on paper, Japan, 14th-16th century, The combination of an owl with flocks of either crested mynas or crows, both loud and rowdy birds, appear on a number of ink paintings beginning in the 1500s. In this painting, five raucous crested mynas (a type of starling native to China) surround a stoic owl intent on resting on a blossoming plum branch. The vertical creases in the painting surface indicate that it was originally painted as a folding fan, and, given its appearance, it must have been a beloved, heavily used fan. After the fan had served its utilitarian purpose, its owner had the painted paper removed from the bamboo ribs of the fan and remounted as a hanging scroll for interior decoration.