Cleveland Museum of Art

Mirror with a Coiling Dragon

Date

700s

Medium

bronze

Culture

China, Tang dynasty (618-907)

Department

Chinese Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Cast in high-tin and low-lead bronze by the lost wax method, this mirror has a dark and lustrous patina known as heiqigu (literally, “black lacquer antique”). It bears a design of a coiling dragon among trailing clouds. With a small, elongated head connecting to an S-curve of the neck that is as sinuous as the body and tail, the dragon of the Tang period is unique. The patina of this mirror is known as heiqigu (literally, “black lacquer antique”).

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