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A Tang Dynasty Bronze Mirror with Dogs and Grapevine browse these categories for related items... All Items: Chinese: Antiquities: Early Metalwork: Pre AD 1000: item #953752 Please refer to our stock #hg-32 when inquiring.
$2800.00 |
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| An early Tang Dynasty bronze mirror (circa A.D. 8th C.) cast with the lost wax process and depicting five exotic and lithe canines with talon-like paws cavorting around a large, pierced, central boss amidst a ground of grapes and vines, their long tails terminating in palmettes in a variation of the more familiar and probably Persian-inspired, lion and grape vine pattern. The perimeter is marked by a narrow saw-tooth or chevron band and a raised rim typical of the period, the outside edges slanting slightly inward, and decorated with a notched or granulated pattern. The large, rounded suspension loop, protruding above the elevated rim, undoubtedly protected the slightly recessed, delicate relief decoration. (The mirror is in excellent condition with only minor dents or frits to the rim.) The reflective side—subtly convex in shape to widen the visual range of the mirror—retains much of its silvery color with patches of dark reddish-brown cuprite and green malachite encrustation. Grapevine mirrors with lions or dogs, appearing first in the later Sui Dynasty, disappear completely by the middle of the Eighth Century Tang Dynasty, along with the prevalent saw-tooth or chevron pattern found in Sui and early Tang mirrors. Later Tang mirrors more often feature foliate or lobed rims which are highly polished but otherwise undecorated. Tang mirrors represent a rather radical departure from the rigidly geometric, mandala-like mirrors of earlier periods. However fantastical these talon-footed, palmette-tailed dogs, each is depicted in a slightly different running posture with a stylistic naturalism that is quintessentially Tang. The periods afterward will see a return to geometrically arranged, religious or mystical mirrors firmly in the Han tradition but of generally lesser quality and typically cast of yellow bronze which needed to be plated with reflective metals. Diameter: 8.8cm (3-1/2”). Diameter of suspension loop: 2cm. Thickness of rim: 0.3cm. Weight: 159 grams (5.6 ounces). From a private San Francisco collection. Additional photographs will be e-mailed to you on request. Copyright 2009 by Robert McCaffrey for RuyiStudio San Francisco. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Listed shipping prices include shipping insurance premium. | ||