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More than 4,000 years ago, the seven-pointed star mirror of the Qi family culture in the late Neolithic era opened the historical prelude to the Chinese bronze mirror, confirming the ancient legend in the "Biography of the Yellow Emperor of Xuanyuan":
Di Yin cast mirror to image it, for fifteen faces, the divine mirror treasure mirror also.
It is composed of a mirror surface, mirror back, mirror button, and button seat, and the inner, middle, and outer areas, and the circular plate "with button mirror" at the inscription belt is also fixed at this time.
The earliest copper mirror-shaped system - Qi family culture seven-pointed star mirror 丨 northern net
As for the hand mirror with handle preserved in the Forbidden City or in private houses, it has long been considered to be an imported product of the west wind after the Ming and Qing dynasties, and belongs to the Western handheld handle mirror system. The enamel handle mirror with watch hidden in the Chuxiu Palace was indeed made in 18th century England, with a glass mirror and a chronograph watch embedded in the handle, which perfectly combines technology and art.
Cixi grooming photo Baidu pictures
With a table enamel mirror "Qing Palace Life Dictionary"
The "Dream of the Red Chamber", which was written during the Qianlong period, shows that the mirror with handle was commonly used by the families of the rich and noble in the Qing Dynasty. The fifth and second episodes in the book say:
Qingwen herself holds a "target mirror" (the medicine) and sticks it to the two suns.
The fifth and fifth times also mentioned three or four small girls holding a basin, a towel, a "target mirror" and other things to serve TanChun to wash his face. Because the shape of the mirror is similar to the target used to practice archery in the old days, it is called "target mirror".
"87 Edition of Dream of the Red Chamber" stills basho fan-shaped purple gold inlaid enamel landscape pattern small target mirror
It is worth noting that not all of the hand mirrors with handles in this period are Western-style "glass hand mirrors" with foreign inflows or tributes from Guangdong. Popular among the people, mainly copper mirrors with handles. Strictly speaking, it is a faction in China's native copper mirror system.
A must for a qing dynasty woman to marry
The Liaoning Museum collects the Qing Dynasty "Huzhou Xue Jinhou Five Bat Double Happiness Mirror with Handle" The mirror surface is round, the center of the mirror is decorated with the double joy character of the calligraphy, the writing is clear and regular, the outer ring of the word has a raised ring, and the outer area of the ring is decorated with five bas-relief bats, and the lines are delicate and smooth.
Between the two bats at the end of the handle there is an inscription "Huzhou Xue Hui Gongzao". The bronze mirror made by the Xue family in Huzhou was a well-known product at that time, and the famous model was cast on the mirror for the same trademark to be remembered for brand certification.
In the old days, when women were married, the bronze mirror was the same important dowry as the "descendant bucket" and the dressing table. Decorated with double joy ornaments, indicating joy and joy, bascarved five bats, meaning "five blessings come together", pinning on the yearning and commitment to auspiciousness and a better life.
Qinghu Prefecture Xue JinHou made five bats double happiness with handle mirror 丨 Sina Weibo
A favorite of the literati
The "crane-patterned bronze mirror with handle" of the Jiangning Museum is earlier, a relic of the Ming Dynasty, and the two sides of the mirror button are decorated with flying cranes, which is a common crane mirror after the 14th century. Among them, there are not only the superficial meanings of the literati and gentlemen yearning for supernatural life based on the beauty of the crane's posture; there is also no lack of symbolic meanings such as purity, auspiciousness, longevity, and love.
Ming crane pattern with handle copper mirror Jiangning Museum collection
In fact, the copper mirror with handle has matured in the design and manufacturing process before the Song and Yuan dynasties.
Its large number of appearances and uses are supported by deep social needs. First of all, ancient Chinese buildings often encountered the problem of insufficient lighting, rain and haze weather was even worse, and the limitations of the palace boudoir mirrors increased. Holding the mirror by hand is more convenient and casual than the frame mirror and the hanging mirror, and can be "illuminated".
Secondly, the copper mirror with handle cooperates with the frame mirror and the suspension mirror, which can peep and trim the hair bun of the back half of the head. Therefore, in its own development, China's copper mirror should be derived from a more practical and convenient handle-shaped system according to the needs of life.
A symbol of good luck
The Bronze Mirror with Handle in the Song Dynasty mainly has dragons, phoenixes, flowers and birds, character fairy stories, gossip, auspicious words and trademark inscriptions, etc., and the phoenix bird pattern has the most characteristics. The bronze mirror ornamentation of this theme is slender and gorgeous, varied, vivid and lively, giving the world an asymmetrical beauty. In particular, the "double phoenix" pattern contains the meaning of auspiciousness, festivity, wealth and happiness, and is widely favored by people.
It was cast from the second year of the Northern Song Dynasty 's Zhenzong Dazhongxiangfu ( 1009 ) to the Southern Song Dynasty 's Lizong Baoyou Wunian ( 1258 ) . The "Song Dynasty Double Phoenix Pattern Mirror with Handle" is this type.
Song Dynasty double phoenix pattern with handle mirror
Taoist Dharma Instrument
The Song Dynasty was also a period of unprecedented popularity in Taoism, and the bronze mirror was influenced by this to cast many fairy figures with phoenix motifs. Among them, most of them are male figures wearing high crowns and robes. The female figure is found in the "Fairy Blowing Pipe Handle Mirror" recorded in the "Lu'an Unearthed Bronze Mirror", and the inner district is decorated with a fairy woman blowing a pipe in the Meizhu Mountain Stone, showing a rich atmosphere of life. These mirrors are not only daily necessities, but also sometimes serve as Taoist instruments.
Song Dynasty "fairy riding phoenix flying in the sky" with a handle mirror
Various special-shaped mirrors
In addition to the circle, sunflower-shaped, diamond-shaped, peach-shaped, bell-shaped, furnace-shaped and cloud-shaped crescent-shaped mirrors were very common in the Song Dynasty, and the number of angled square mirrors and mirrors with handles increased relatively. Part of the reason is the inheritance of Tang Dynasty round, diamond flowers and other bulk mirror shapes. Another part of the reason is that the handicraft industry of the Song Dynasty was developed, and it paid attention to the formal beauty of creation, and had enough technical strength to create more varieties. The sunflower type with a handle copper mirror found in the ancient shipwreck of the Southern Song Dynasty "Nanhai I" is this kind of special-shaped mirror.
The handle handles of this period are divided into straight round flat shapes, rectangular strips and vase shapes, the stem ends are rounded or square, and a few handle handles have cast patterns or chronological inscriptions.
Southern Song Dynasty "Nanhai I" unearthed Shuangfeng Chaoyang with handle copper mirror Guangdong Maritime Silk Road Museum collection
Song Qixing Bagua with handle vase type handle Collection of Lishui Museum
Famous brand - Huzhou Shijia mirror
Many Song Dynasty bronze mirrors are cast with the inscription "Huzhou", indicating that they are the famous Huzhou "Zhaozi" - copper mirrors produced in Huzhou. The ancestral name of the royal family of the Song Dynasty had "Jing", in order to avoid the "mirror", the mirror was changed to "Jianzi" or "Zhaozi".
Huzhou Shijia Mirror is a sought-after brand exported to the whole country and surrounding countries, with a variety of "Huzhou Shishilang True Refining Bronze Photos", "Huzhou Yifengqiao South Restaurant Relative to Shijia True Bronze Photos", "Huzhou True Stone Thirty Lang Family Photos", "Huzhou Real Stone Little Second Brother Bronze Photos".
Dexing, Jiangxi Province unearthed the Southern Song Dynasty Huzhou ShiJia Nian Second Uncle Male Nian Qilang Mirror, six petals sunflower shaped with handle. The center of the mirror is decorated with a rectangular frame and casts the eleven-character italic logo. The casting is neat and the texture is light and thin.
Southern Song Dynasty Huzhou Shi Nian Second Uncle Boy Nian Qilang Mirror
A beautifully matched case appears
The common use of bronze mirrors with handles in the Song Dynasty is evident from a large number of exquisite mirror boxes. The lacquer mirror box with a golden moon shadow plum pattern unearthed from the tomb of Huang Zhuo in the Southern Song Dynasty of Shaowu, Fujian Province, has a long handle and three golden flower flowers on the handle. The Changzhou Museum has a Southern Song Dynasty rhinoceros mirror box, which was excavated with a built-in double fish pattern mirror. Eight groups of moiré patterns are carved on the surface, handle and perimeter of the box.
Southern Song Dynasty golden moon shadow plum pattern decorative lacquer mirror box 丨 Baidu pictures
Southern Song Dynasty Rhinoceros Mirror Box Collection, Changzhou Museum Collection
Cultural output of copper-shank mirrors
Bronze mirrors with handles with novel shapes also appeared in large quantities in Liao and Jin, which confronted the Song.
Through a long war with the Song Dynasty, the Liao Dynasty captured a large number of Han craftsmen and placed them in Shangjing, Linhuangfu and other places, and developed its own mirror-making industry. Since most of the craftsmen came from the north of the Central Plains, most of the styles were consistent with the Five Dynasties and song dynasties. On the basis of imitating han and Tang mirrors and borrowing from Song mirrors, the copper mirrors with handles in the Liao Dynasty also integrated the Khitan national style in terms of ornamentation, modeling and decorative techniques, but there were few cultural relics passed down from generation to generation.
The Liao Dynasty had a bronze mirror with a handle on the figure
The main sources of jindai copper mirrors are:
Heavy plunder in the war of "Destroying the Liaoke song";
Trade with the Song Dynasty on commodities. The immortal mirrors, character mirrors, and Huzhou mirrors that appeared in the middle of the Jin Dynasty are all typical Song mirror styles;
Homemade. Mainly originated from the copper mirror workshop in Jinnei. Jin Shangjing once unearthed a "heart-to-heart printing copper mirror". The mirror has a sunflower-shaped handle, with an engraving of the word "official" and a flower pledge. The center of the mirror has two heart words buckled up and down, highlighting the theme of male and female love, which is a souvenir of love.
Jin Dynasty, portable copper mirror with handle is also a prop for miscellaneous opera performances. The woman who plays Danjiao in the carved bricks of the Golden Tomb No. 3 of Jishan Huayu holds a copper mirror with a handle wrapped in silk in both hands.
"Archaeology of Tibetan Land in China" explains that in the process of the origin of the mirror with a handle in the Song and Liao-Jin dynasties, the possibility of foreign cultural influence is not excluded, but in terms of the overall cultural appearance it reflects, it belongs to the traditional Chinese mirror system.
Golden heart printed bronze mirror Kaifeng Museum collection
Although the Song Dynasty was the heyday of the bronze mirror with a handle, its production age was far more than this.
According to the "Encyclopedia of China, Archaeological Volumes, and Bronze Mirrors", copper mirrors with handles first appeared in the middle and late Tang Dynasty. The Shaanxi History Museum hides Tang Dynasty painted mirror figurines, combing her head in a black bun, sideburns hugging her face, her face plump, wearing a tender green long-sleeved shirt, and wearing a red high-waisted long skirt, which is a typical Tang Dynasty attire. In his right hand, he holds a bronze mirror with a handle, and the side of the head seems to be illuminated.
In 1955, the double phoenix mirror with a handle excavated from the Tang Tomb No. 14 in Gaolou Village, the eastern suburbs of Xi'an City, confirmed in the form of physical data that the mirror with handle had been cast or used in Middle-earth during the Sui and Tang Dynasties, which was limited by the level of technology and production costs, and failed to be popularized in large quantities.
Painted mirrored figurine 丨 360 personal library
Tang Dynasty copper mirror double phoenix entangled branches unearthed in the eastern suburbs of Xi'an "Sui and Tang Dynasty copper mirror pattern"
At the Site of Qugong in Lhasa, Tibet, a bronze mirror with an iron handle was unearthed during the pre-Tubo Dynasty (3000-6th centuries). The center of the mirror is engraved with a four-petal symmetrical cloud pattern, and a small bird stands in the clouds. The shape is similar to the scythian culture of the scythian culture with a handle mirror, or related to the South Asian subcontinent or Central Asia, further supporting the conclusion that China has a handle bronze mirror introduced and made no later than the Sui and Tang dynasties.
Tibetan Qugong iron handle bronze mirror 丨 China Art Newspaper
However, the manufacture of copper mirrors with handles in China is still hundreds of years ahead.
The bronze mirror with a handle excavated from Luding Umbrella Gangping in Sichuan can be traced back to the middle and late Warring States period to the early Western Han Dynasty. The mirror surface is round, the mirror handle is tubular, the middle of the stalk is rounded, the lower part is made of two sets of skirts, and there is a hollow round button at the bottom. A set of concentric circles on the back of the mirror divides it into two areas, the outer area is composed of 8 fish patterns connecting end to end, the inner area is composed of 4 winding snake patterns, the layout is balanced and symmetrical, and in the center of the 4 snakes are two birds standing in opposite directions. The combination of the mirror surface and the mirror handle is prominently almond-shaped, and its interior is monster-like, and the curved interior of the middle of the handle has concentric circles, and the concentric circles are decorated with fine circles, and the skirt is decorated with several sets of fine lines. This mirror not only has a regent function, but is also used as a religious magic weapon and a witchcraft tool.
Some experts have deduced that the copper mirrors with handles that frequently appeared between the Eastern Zhou and Western Han Dynasties in present-day Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Gansu, Qinghai, Sichuan, and Yunnan regions originated in the Eurasian steppe region. After entering the Hengduan Mountains of Sichuan, he began to produce and evolve a unique style, which flourished in the middle and late Warring States period.
Copper mirror with handle excavated from Umbrella Gangping in Luding, Sichuan 丨 "Preliminary Study on the Early Copper Mirror with Handle in Sichuan Region"
In cultural exchanges with neighboring countries, the bronze mirror with a handle also affected Japan and Korea. Ancient Japanese ornamentation with handle "and mirror" is rich in meaning, especially the Penglai pattern has the most surviving, such as the late 18th century crane emblem Penglai pattern mirror hidden in the Tsinghua University Art Museum, the Shouming Penglai Duobao pattern handle mirror in the first and middle of the 19th century, etc., "a drop in the sea", reflecting the deep origin of Chinese and Japanese culture.
In the late 18th century, the crane emblem Penglai pattern handle mirror 丨 Beijing News
Shouming Penglai Duobao pattern mirror in the first and middle of the 19th century 丨 Beijing News
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