Mirror with Interlacing Floral Motifs and Twelve Zodiac Animals

纏枝花十二生肖鏡

late 500s–early 600s

China, Sui dynasty

(581-618)

Medium

bronze

Measurements

Diameter: 15.4 cm (6 1/16 in.); Overall: 1.4 cm (9/16 in.); Rim: 0.5 cm (3/16 in.)
Weight: 294 g (10.37 oz.)

Credit Line

Gift of Drs. Thomas and Martha Carter in Honor of Sherman E. Lee 1995.336

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Location

Not on view

Description

The design of this mirror consists of a central knob and a series of concentric circular bands. The innermost band contains an eight-word inscription, with phrasing typical of earlier mirrors found in the Sui and early Tang periods:

The mirror's light shows the man inside. May you live a long life and [constantly] renew yourself.

Floral branches interlace in the second band. The controlled undulation produces five segments. The third band is divided into twelve parts, which house the zodiac animals in the clockwise sequence: rat, ox, tiger, hare, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, cock, dog, and boar. A sunken ring of the well-known sawtooth design continues to be effective, before the undecorated rim sets the final enclosure.