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Identification and Creation

Object Number
2010.437
Title
Small Circular Mirror with Relief Decoration of a Bird in Flight with Wings Outstretched
Classification
Mirrors
Work Type
mirror
Date
2nd-3rd century
Places
Creation Place: East Asia, China
Period
Eastern Han (25-220) to Three Kingdoms (220-280) period
Culture
Chinese
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/315451

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Cast bronze
Dimensions
Diam. 9.2 cm (3 5/8 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Edmund Lin (1928-2006; Professor, Harvard Medical School), Boston; by bequest to the Harvard Art Museum

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Edmund Chi Chien Lin
Accession Year
2010
Object Number
2010.437
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
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Descriptions

Description
This small circular bronze mirror has a narrow, undecorated outer rim that is deeply beveled. This leads to two circular borders with geometric decor -- the outer border with sawtooth pattern, the inner border with short, radiating lines. The decorative area is lightly sunken and features a bird at the center, partly in relief and partly in thread-relief. A large hemispherical knob sits at the center of the mirror and overlaps the bird's body. There are four small bosses interspersed in the decorated field. The reflecting face has been highly polished.

Verification Level

This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu