Title
Mirror
Year/Period
Late 19th-early 20th centuries
Region
Probably Singapore
Dimension
Object size: H200 x W155 x D10 cm
Accession No.
2004-01028-001
Collection of
Credit Line
Purchased with funds from Mr. and Mrs. Lee Seng Tee
This large mirror would have been used in together with armchairs and side tables in the main reception hall of a Peranakan home. The mirror is almost entirely European in form and detail, such as the cornice with its egg and dart motifs and the foliage scroll at the base of the mirror. The only overtly non-European elements are the Daoist Eight immortals, carved and gilt, running down the sides of the frame. The customisation of European-style furniture to suit Peranakan taste was to develop later into a full-blown hybrid style combining Chinese and European forms and decorations that was uniquely Peranakan.
