Title
Lobed mirror with garden scene
Year/Period
Tang Dynasty, China (618 - 907)
Region
Unknown
Material
Dimension
Object Size: 1.4 x 15.5 x 16 cm
Accession No.
2005.1-00851
Collection of
Credit Line
The Tang Shipwreck was acquired through the generous donation of the Estate of Khoo Teck Puat.
This lobed mirror is decorated with a garden or woodland scene with a pond and birds, and possibly a seated human figure at the left. Twenty-nine Chinese bronze mirrors were discovered in the Tang shipwreck, a 9th-century vessel that was en route from China to the Middle East when it sank off the coast of Belitung Island in the Java Sea. Because of their high quality and age, they were undoubtedly goods for sale rather than personal possessions of the crew. Silvery alloy was used on one side of the mirror to give it its reflective quality, while the other was often cast with decorations for aesthetics purposes.
