Chinese Bronze Mirror.
Mirror with linked arcs pattern.
Eastern Han Dynasty (AD 25-220).
Casting era : The early years of this period.
From the edge to the center : flat and wide edge belt, comb pattern belt,
cloud and thunder pattern belt, comb pattern belt, linked eight arcs pattern
belt, flat hill belt, four leaves pattern and Chinese character inscription
base, a knob.
Chinese character inscription : "Your descendant will flourish for
a long time."
No restoration. Intact.
400g.
D-137mm.
VF.
Sold.
It is said that this type of mirror was made in the upper place of the
Hwang Ho (the yellow River).
On the reverse of this type of mirror, TLV pattern is drawn. On TLV pattern,
there are some opinions. One opinion explains that this is a game board.
But a weighty opinion explains that "T" is a piller and a tie-beam
which hold the heavens, "L" is a rope, "V" is a pile
which is knocked into the earth. This opinion argues that TLV pattern symbolizes
a vision of the universe which ancient Chinese imaged. In any case, I think
this pattern means "Happy Augury".
The main part of the body is divided into small eight parts by the TLV
pattern. On the each small part, "The four gods" and sacred animals
are drawn. The four gods guard north, south, east and west.
| The four gods | Xuan wu | This god is expressed by a tortoise and a snake which are mutually intertwined. This god is black and guards North. |
| Zhu que | This god is a red phoenix which guards South. | |
| Qing long | This god is a blue dragon which guards East. | |
| Bai hu | This god is a white tiger which guards West. |
Even today, many people think that "The four gods" can call good fortune in and guard peace.
This type of mirror with TLV pattern was made from the middle years of Western Han Dynasty (206.BC - AD 8) to the late years of Eastern Han Dynasty (AD 25-220).
It is said that this type of mirror was made in the lower reaches of the Huang He (the Yellow River).
Chinese Bronze Mirror.
Mirror with TLV pattern and sacred animals.
Eastern Han Dynasty (AD 25-220).
From the edge to the center : flat edge belt, double zigzag lines and dots
pattern belt, flat hill belt, comb pattern belt, TLV pattern, sacred animals
and four projections belt, double squares belt, wave pattern belt, double
squares belt, four leaves base, a knob.
Qing long (blue dragon) pairs with a wizard. Bai hu (white tiger) pairs
with a sacred animal. A toad pairs with a stag. A sacred animal pairs with
a sacred animal. These two sacred animals might be Qing long.
No restoration. Intact.
691g.
D-164mm.
VF.
Sold.
Chinese bronze mirror.
Mirror with TLV pattern and Zhu que (red phoenix).
Eastern Han Dynasty (AD 25-220).
From the edge to the center : wreath pattern belt, flat hill belt, saw
pattern belt, comb pattern belt, TLV pattern, eight projections with linked
seven arcs base and Zhu que pattern belt, double squares, twelve projections
pattern belt, square, a knob.
There is Zhu que which folds its wings between T and L. There are many
small cloud patterns in the space of TLV pattern. Twelve projections belt
symbolizes twelve months and twelve directions.
No restoration. Intact.
505g.
D-140mm.
VF.
Sold.
Shuichi Yamashita
1696, Aoyagi
Ichihara-shi, Chiba
299-0102, JAPAN
E-mail : ge6128@i.bekkoame.ne.jp