Mirror with a Coiling Dragon, 8th century, Tang dynasty (618-907), bronze, Diameter: w. 10.2 cm; Overall: h. 1.1 cm; Rim: h. 0.8 cm. Gift of Drs. Thomas and Martha Carter in Honor of Sherman E. Lee, 1995.367 © The 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 among others.