A rare silvery bronze  circular mirror with two animals and inscription. Sui-Early Tang dynasty, 6th-7th century. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2012

Finely cast in high relief with two lean dogs depicted as if running or hunting as they encircle the knob, all within narrow sawtooth borders on the inner wall of the encircling ridge that separates them from an inscription and wave border on the rim; 6 3/8 in. (16.1 cm.) diam., ¼ in. (.5 cm.) thick, box - 661.7g. Estimate $20,000 - $30,000

隋/初唐 湛若止水銘瑞獸紋鍍銀銅鏡

Provenance: A.W. Bahr (1877-1959).

Robert H. Ellsworth Collection, New York, acquired from Edna Bahr, Connecticut, late 1960s. 

Notes: The depiction of the two dog-like animals on this mirror is particularly unusual as they are quite realistically depicted - their elongated bodies showing the strain of running, which includes saliva streaming from the jaws of the dog with prominent ribs. 

Christie's. Luminous Perfection: Fine Chinese Mirrors from the Robert H. Ellsworth Collection, 22 March 2012, New York, Rockefeller Plaza