Japanese Sandhill Cranes - Hand Painted Art Tile

I was so enthralled watching a video of this elegant bird’s mating dance in the snow that I was inspired to create this crane design. Because the Sandhill cranes mate for life the Japanese consider them a symbol of eternal love and their wedding kimonos incorporate crane designs into their satin brocade silks. The Japanese character on the tile is the symbol for “love” so I like to give these as wedding or anniversary gifts. I found out Sandhill Cranes also live in the USA and I was able to visit a crane reserve in my area and see them up close and personal. These birds are typically 5 foot tall with a red forehead and black legs. When they migrate in the Fall you can hear their “trilling” sounds but can barely see them as they are flying @ 10,000 feet catching the “thermals” so they don’t have to flap their 5-8 foot wingspans very often. They are truly a magnificent bird.