The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of April 25, 2024
Mirror with Animals and Birds
early 700s
Location: 239 Chinese Ceramics and Metalwork
Description
The silver inset of this mirror back was decorated with several hand-beaten techniques. High-relief birds, beasts, and foliage were hammered from the underside (repoussé) and finely chiseled on the front (chased). The background and border were punched with a metal stamp of tiny circles. Mirrors of this precious material, diminutive size, and starlike form number among the most refined products of Tang metalworkers. Some historians suggest that miniature mirrors were specifically designed as burial gifts for children, but Tang gold and silver cosmetic boxes of similar scale indicate that these objects were made to grace the dressing tables of elegant women.- ?–1951(Howard Hollis and Co., Cleveland, OH, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)1951–The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Dayton Art Institute, "Chinese Gold and Silver from the T'ang Dynasty from American Collections," Showings: 11/3/1984-1/6/1985, Dayton; 2/5/1985-4/21/1985 Cooper Hewitt, NYMirrors: Art and Symbol. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 3-November 18, 1984).Arts of China from The Cleveland Museum of Art, Mansfield Art Center, Feb. 27-April 10, 1983Los Angeles County Museum, The Arts of the T'ang Dynasty, January 8-February 17, 1957, no. 143
- {{cite web|title=Mirror with Animals and Birds|url=false|author=|year=early 700s|access-date=25 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1951.292