The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of June 24, 2025

Octafoil Mirror with Lunar Palace

early 1100s–mid-1200s
(1115-1234)
bronze
Diameter: 21.3 cm (8 3/8 in.); Overall: 0.9 cm (3/8 in.); Rim: 0.8 cm (5/16 in.)
Gift of Drs. Thomas and Martha Carter in Honor of Sherman E. Lee 1995.375
Location: not on view

Description

Bronze mirrors typically have one polished and one decorated side and were used in tombs for ritual purpose or served as disks for reflection. This mirror depicts the imagined scene of the moon in Chinese mythology. Legend says that the goddess Chang E consumed the elixir of immortality that she stole from her husband, the archer Yi, and flew to the moon. Chang E’s palace, the Broad Cold Palace (Guanghan gong) on the left side of the composition, is juxtaposed with a tall pine tree symbolizing longevity. A rabbit and a toad, both creatures believed to live on the moon, can be seen in the center.
  • ?–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, Ohio: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2000. Mentioned: cat. no. 83, pp. 87–88, 109, 124; Reproduced: p. 87
    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. 62, fig. 16 www.jstor.org
    Kim, Yŏng-wŏn. Miguk Met'ŭrop'ollit'an misulgwan sojang Han'guk munhwajae [미국 메트로폴리탄 미술관 소장 한국 문화재 = Korean art collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, U.S.A]. Haeoe Sojae Munhwajae Chosa. Taejŏn: Kungnip munhwajae yŏn'guso = National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, 2012. p. 077, fig. 161
    Sin, Myŏng-hŭi, and Kwang-sŏp Kim. Sam kwa yesul sok ch'ŏngdong iyagi 삶 과 예술 속 청동 이야기 = Bronze in life and art]. Ch’ungch’ŏng-bukto Ch’ŏngju-si : Kungnip Ch’ŏngju Pangmulgwan, 2016. p. 152, fig. 116
  • Escaping to a Better World: Eccentrics and Immortals in Chinese Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 13-November 6, 2022).
    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).
  • {{cite web|title=Octafoil Mirror with Lunar Palace|url=false|author=|year=early 1100s–mid-1200s|access-date=24 June 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1995.375