Creative Commons License
Mirror with Four "Mountain” Characters
(China )
In Chinese cosmology, the universe may be represented as geometric shapes. The circle shape of the mirror itself designates the heavens, and the square in the center represents the earth, with the central knob as the axis that connects earthly and heavenly realms. The four upside-down T-shaped motifs may be read as the Chinese character for “mountain” (shan), symbolizing the mountains that demarcate the boundaries of the earth.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Laurance and Isabel Roberts, Baltimore, Maryland., 1933, by purchase [from a dealer in Peking, name unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1995, by gift.
Geographies
China (Place of Origin)
Measurements
Diam: 4 5/8 in. (11.7 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Isabel and Laurence Roberts, 1995
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
54.2885