Cranes
The Tancho fish got me to thinking about the Tanchou crane and I investigated it a little. This picture is from a calendar I have and came from an old scroll (thank you for the calendar Akemi-san). The crane is considered sacred and seen as a symbol of fidelity, good luck, love and long life in the Orient. It is the second rarest crane in the world behind the Whooping crane.
Origami cranes are often folded in Japan to express sympathy or hope - especially when done in large numbers of a 1000 or more. After September 11th, a number of school children in Japan folded cranes in sympathy. The the following link for information on how to fold one: origami crane
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2 comments:
I’ve always thought cranes were especially art worthy. They are the epitome of elegant. Your posting made me think how calendars are no longer “given away” like they once were. It used to be that every vendor, tool supplier, and competitor jumped at the chance to hand out cool calendars at the first of the year. Not so anymore. I only got one chance to get a “free calendar” this year. While in San Angelo, a few weeks ago I picked up a Western motif calendar from Sid Richardson Pipeline Company. It was being handed out as a public awareness device to inform on emergency response/information in case of a pipeline leaks etc. They had two styles of calendars to choose from. The choice was reproductions of nice western art paintings (horses, buffalos, cows, scenic vistas, and cowboys riding herd in storms) and the other had caricature pictures of cowboys and ranch hands in comical situations.
You mentioned the rarity of the Tanchou Zuru. Is it indigenous to Japan, does it migrate, and what is the cause of the demise?
Cody
The cranes migrate and their dwindling numbers are largely due to loss of habitat. I don't know much more about them. By the way, Tsuru (pronounce zuru after some sounds such as here) means crane. The town where I work is called Tsuru mi, translated roughly as "Crane Watch" or view. There used to be a lot of cranes there. I like cranes too.
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