Art Institute of Chicago

Hand Mirror

Egyptian

Date

New Kingdom, Dynasty 18 (about 1550–1295 BCE)

Medium

Copper alloy

Culture

Egypt

Department

Arts of Africa

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

The round disk of this hand mirror was originally polished to a reflective sheen. The elegant shape of the handle references papyrus plants that grew in Egypt’s marshy regions. Together, the handle and disk evoke an image of the sun rising from a papyrus umbel (flower cluster), a symbol of the sun’s daily regeneration. The ancient Egyptian words for mirror and life are homonyms, so this object’s shape also playfully refers to the ankh hieroglyph used to write both words.

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