The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 19, 2025

Lobed Mirror with a Tortoise Knob, Musician, and Phoenix

late 700s

China, Tang dynasty

(618-907)
bronze
Diameter: 21.6 cm (8 1/2 in.); Overall: 1.2 cm (1/2 in.); Rim: 0.6 cm (1/4 in.)
Gift of Drs. Thomas and Martha Carter in Honor of Sherman E. Lee 1995.369
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

The imagery of this mirror includes a tiny turtle knob accompanied by a musician and phoenix.

Description

The inscription on this mirror states it was one of a pair made of metals from the south, and placed in a jade box, perhaps alluding to a wedding gift. The meaning of its design is not entirely known, but may refer to the Daoist immortal Hou Jin, who played the qin (stringed instrument), understood the language of birds, and could make predictions based on the reflections on water. The motifs of the phoenix, the pond, and the qin may all refer to the quest for immortality.
  • ?–1995
    Thomas and Martha Carter, Madison, WI, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1995–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Chou, Ju-hsi. Circles of reflection: the Carter collection of Chinese bronze mirrors. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2000. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 70, pp. 76–77, 109, 123
    Wang, Eugene Y. "Mirror, Moon, and Memory in Eighth-Century China: From Dragon Pond to Lunar Palace." Cleveland Studies in the History of Art 9 (2005): 42–67. Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 56, fig. 12 www.jstor.org
    Griswold, William, Xiaofei Tian, Richard Von Glahn, Feng Zhao, S. J. Vainker, Masaaki Itakura, Jiang Wu, et al. China’s Southern Paradise: Treasures from the Lower Yangzi Delta. Edited by Clarissa Von Spee. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 2023. Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 107, no. 15
  • China’s Southern Paradise: Treasures from the Lower Yangzi Delta. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 10, 2023-January 7, 2024).
    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 in America, New York, NY (February 6-June 2, 2002); Elvehjem Museum of Art, Madison, WI (December 20, 2003-February 29, 2004).
  • {{cite web|title=Lobed Mirror with a Tortoise Knob, Musician, and Phoenix|url=false|author=|year=late 700s|access-date=19 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1995.369