Two ducks on a bank beside reeds, with a small bird perched on a bent reed and vertical Japanese text at left, in a woodblock print.

Ducks and a Bird on Reeds, from Myriad Birds Kyoka Competition

A pair of ducks rests on a mossy bank beside tall reeds, one turned toward the viewer with a dark green head and mottled brown plumage, the other with its head raised. A small songbird perches on a bending reed at upper left, next to columns of hand-written Japanese text in a color woodblock-printed book.

Artist: Kitagawa Utamaro
Date: c. 1790
Medium: Color woodblock-printed book
Source: Art Institute of Chicago
Size: 1686 × 1127 px

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Public domain · Art Institute of Chicago releases this image under CC0 (latest date 1795).
Rights checked 2026-11-05 · tier A · as stated by the source: CC0 (Art Institute of Chicago, is_public_domain=true)

Credit (appreciated, not required for public-domain works): Art Institute of Chicago, Martin A. Ryerson Collection

Japanese Prints edo period ukiyo-e japanese woodblock print reeds color woodblock songbird bird painting ducks kitagawa utamaro utamaro

Ducks and a Bird on Reeds, from Myriad Birds Kyoka Competition

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