Artwork Page for Mirror with Handle, Decorated with "Double Happiness" and Five Bats

Details / Information for Mirror with Handle, Decorated with "Double Happiness" and Five Bats

Mirror with Handle, Decorated with "Double Happiness" and Five Bats

雙喜五福帶柄鏡

c. 1800

workshop of Tang Wanheng 湯萬亨

(Chinese, active c. 1800)
Culture
China, Qing dynasty (1644-1911)
Medium
brass
Measurements
Diameter: 16.5 cm (6 1/2 in.); Overall: 0.6 cm (1/4 in.); Rim: 0.6 cm (1/4 in.)
Weight: 310.5 g (10.95 oz.)
Credit Line
Gift of Drs. Thomas and Martha Carter in Honor of Sherman E. Lee 1995.401
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
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Did You Know?

The five–bat design signals a wish for good fortune.

Description

This mirror bears a large character of xi 囍 ("double happiness," as in a marriage) as its principal decoration. Below that, a smaller inscription in a rectangular frame establishes the mirror maker's identity. Tang Wanheng 湯萬亨 must have enjoyed a lucrative trade and sufficient renown to warrant the inclusion of his name on his products. It has been suggested that these mirrors were not so much made for reflective purposes as for ritualistic use during the marriage ceremony, hence the "double happiness" as its main decoration.
The back of a circular brass mirror features a central circular frame containing a raised "double happiness" character. Five stylized bats with scrolled wings encircle this central motif. Below the circle, a small rectangular seal with three vertical characters is positioned above a long, rectangular handle. The entire surface has a dark, textured patina with relief details that rise from the flat, circular disc.

Mirror with Handle, Decorated with "Double Happiness" and Five Bats

c. 1800

Tang Wanheng

(Chinese, active c. 1800)
China, Qing dynasty (1644-1911)

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