Metalwork: Japanese Mirrors
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Mirror, Auspicious flower and lion design, By Ao Ietsugu, Excavated at Yamada Sakuratani-machi, Kyoto, Nara period, 8th century (Gift of Mr. Araki Otojiro)
Japanese Gallery (Honkan) Room 13
June 4, 2013 (Tue) - September 1, 2013 (Sun)In Japan in the Yayoi through Nara periods (from about the 5th century BC to the 8th century AD), mirrors were created in imitation of bronze mirrors imported from continental Asia and Korea. From the Heian period (794 - 1192) onward, uniquely Japanese designs and styles evolved, continuing to do so until the Edo period (1603 - 1868). These mirrors are referred to collectively as Japanese mirrors. This exhibition begins with Chinese-style mirrors of the Nara period, which were made by imitating Chinese mirrors, then features Japanese mirrors, which developed over a long time from the Heian to the Edo period. This exhibition shows changes in the forms of mirrors, as well as the tastes of each period as displayed in the various decorative expressions of the mirrors.
Current exhibit includes:
Eight-foiled Mirror, Auspicious flower and pair of phoenixes design, Heian period, 11th - 12th century (Important Cultural Property)
Mirror, Paulownia and bamboo design, By Ao Ietsugu, Azuchi-Momoyama period, dated 1588
Mirror, Auspicious flower and lion design, Excavated at Yamada Sakuratani-machi, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto, Nara period, 8th century (Gift of Mr. Araki Otojiro)
Rectangular Mirror (Mirror with image of Kannon in hairline engraving), Crane with pine sprig design, Heian - Kamakura period, 12th - 13th century (Important Cultural Property)