Lot 106. A rare inscribed 'four cardinal directions' silvered bronze mirror, Sui-Tang Dynasty (581-907). Diameter 7⅞ in., 20.2 cm. Estimate: 12,000 - 15,000 USD. Lot sold: 37,800 USD. © Sothebys.

cast with a thirty-two character inscription reading xianshan bingzhao zhishui qiming huachao yanlai yueye liuming longpan wurui luanwu shuangqing chuanwen renshou shiyan xiaobing (The immortal peaks rise as twins, the wise river now has a rival. Morning flowers are made bright and charming, at night, its light reflects the moon. The dragon coils around the jade disc; a pair of fabulous birds dance in harmony. It is said the Renshou era was when the war began to end). 

Note: Inheriting much of the design of 'TVL' mirrors from the earlier Han dynasty, the design of the present mirror illustrates the animals of the four cardinal directions: the green dragon of the east, the vermilion bird of the south, the white tiger of the west and the entwined tortoise and snake of the north. Mirrors of the same design and bearing the same 32-character inscription include one illustrated in The Palace Museum's Collection of Bronze Mirrors, Beijing, 2008, pl. 31; another illustrated in Catalogue of Special Exhibition of Bronze Mirrors in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1986, pl. 70; a third in the Denver Art Museum, illustrated in Schuyler Cammann, 'Chinese Bronze Mirrors', Archives of the Chinese Art Society of America, vol. 9, 1955, p. 60, fig. 7; and a fourth included in the exhibition Circles of Reflection. The Carter Collection of Chinese Bronze Mirrors, The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, 2000, cat. no. 49.

Sotheby's. A Journey Through China's History. The Dr Wou Kiuan Collection Part 1, New York, 22 March 2022