A BRONZE 'PHOENIX' MIRROR NORTHERN SONG – JIN DYNASTY

cast with a pair of hovering phoenix, each grasping a floral sprig, the outer band further decorated with a scroll of composite flowers, engraved with an official inscription

This mirror was produced in northeast China during the Jin dynasty. Its back is divided into concentric circular bands. The outermost band contains densely interwoven floral patterns. The middle band is ringed with a line of small circular studs. The innermost region features a pair of phoenix in flight around the central knob, which is small in relation to the overall large mirror. A thread or ribbon threaded through the knob is unlikely to support the weight of the mirror, which was likely intended for a mirror stand. The mirror’s inscription, which cannot be fully deciphered, suggests that it was produced in an imperial workshop. Such inscriptions are common among mirrors produced in northeast China by the Jin-dynasty court.