Location

241B Arts of Ancient China

Fun Fact

The meaning of the complex imagery on this mirror's back is not fully understood.

Description

Depicted on the mirror back are two Daoist deities: the King Father of the East (Dongwanggong) and the Queen Mother of the West (Xiwangmu). Completing the design are the White Tiger of the west (one the Four Spirits representing the four cardinal directions, including the Green Dragon of the east, the Red Bird of the south, and the Dark Warrior of the north) and a chariot drawn by three horses. The reason for the redundancy of two symbolic images relating to the west is not known.

Provenance

Thomas and Martha Carter, Madison, WI

Citations

Chou, Ju-hsi. Circles of reflection: the Carter collection of Chinese bronze mirrors. Cleveland, Ohio: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2000. Reproduced: cat. no. 33, pp. 48-49, 107, 119

Exhibition history

Circles of Reflection: The Carter Collection of Chinese Bronze Mirrors. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 17-November 26, 2000); China Institute Gallery, New York, NY (February 6-June 2, 2002); Elvehjem Museum of Art, Madison, WI (December 20, 2003-February 29, 2004).

La voie du Tao, un autre chemin de l'Etre. Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais, 75008 Paris, France (March 29-July 5, 2010).

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Mirror with Deities, Chariot, and the White Tiger

書畫鏡

China, Eastern Han dynasty

Location

Fun Fact

Description