Are ancient bronze mirrors valuable now and what is the difference between different dynasties

Bronze mirrors are generally cast in bronze with a high tin content. After the Qin and Han Dynasties, the use of mirrors became more widespread and the production of mirrors became more sophisticated. Its materials include gold, silver, copper, iron, etc., with the most copper, but also gold and silver plating, backpack gold and silver, or inlaid gold and silver wire. Since the Sui and Tang dynasties, there are also with handles, four sides, a variety of patterns. Until the end of the Ming Dynasty, began to glass for the mirror. After the Qianlong period of the Qing dynasty, the glass began to rise in popularity. It is well-made, beautiful form, gorgeous patterns, rich inscriptions, is the treasure of ancient Chinese cultural heritage. At present, most buyers of ancient bronze mirrors still value the aesthetic value of ancient bronze mirrors, i.e. artistry. Experts believe that the bronze mirror in archaeological research occupies a very important position, each historical period of the bronze mirror has its own characteristics, therefore, the bronze mirror for the ancient tombs is one of the important standards to break the generation.

For the soaring market trend of ancient copper mirror in recent years, "the collection of ancient copper mirror is different from traditional antiques and paintings, may not be the older the more valuable, mainly depends on its craft technology and the exquisite degree of the pattern." In terms of the current market, the pattern is extremely fine Tang Dynasty bronze mirror is the most valuable, and the Warring States bronze mirror is the fastest appreciation of the dark horse varieties. From the popularity of copper mirrors, casting technology, artistic style and its achievements and so on several aspects, the Warring States, the two Han Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty is the three most important period of development, these dynasties of copper mirrors is the most worthwhile investment. To the copper mirror auction market reaction, age, the Warring States, Tang mirror prices are the highest.

According to some copper mirror collectors estimate, the ordinary copper mirror prices in the last ten years, three or four times, boutique level of copper mirror is generally more than ten times. 2005, the Shanghai Museum held a collection of copper mirror exhibition, which there are several after the robbery of the boutique. The copper mirror exhibition has not yet closed, Shanghai, several major antique city of copper mirror prices rose steeply several times. In the past two years, copper mirror collection and trade gradually warmed up, copper mirror in the trading floor frequently out of the sky, caused the collection of copper mirror enthusiasts great concern. 2009 spring trading in the sui and tang dynasties twelve Chinese zodiac four god mirror trading to 1,120,000 yuan, autumn trading in the tang dynasty sea beasts and grapes mirror to 2,688,000 yuan. 2010 there are five trading company held a special session of the copper mirror, including the tang dynasty sea beasts and grapes mirror to 7 million yuan! Sold, breaking the record of copper mirror trading.

What is the difference between different dynasties:

Commercial and Zhou Dynasty bronze mirrors

Commercial bronze mirrors are all round. The mirrors were nearly flat or slightly convex, with a thin body and an arched bow-shaped (or bridge-shaped) knob in the center of the back. Western Zhou bronze mirrors are also round, mirror surface flat or slightly convex, the mirror body is thin, mirror knob has a bow, half-ring, rectangular variety. Can also be divided into three categories of plain mirror, heavy ring mirror, bird and animal pattern mirror.

This time to vegetarian mirrors mainly, to the middle of the Western Zhou Dynasty appeared decorated copper mirror, to the late mirror back of the decoration changes, the emergence of animal decoration, breaking the traditional style.

Plain mirror: refers to the back of the mirror without decoration.

Heavy ring pattern mirror: the mirror is slightly convex, with a bow-shaped knob on the back, decorated with a heavy ring pattern.

Bird and Beast Mirror: the mirror is flat and straight with two parallel bow-shaped knobs on the back. A deer motif is used above the knobs, and a bird motif with spreading wings is shown below.

Spring and Autumn and Warring States Period

The Spring and Autumn and Warring States Period was a period of maturity and great development in the history of the development of ancient Chinese bronze mirrors, and it was the transitional stage of ancient Chinese bronze mirrors from childish simplicity to maturity; and it was also an important period in which the center of the casting of bronze mirrors began to migrate from the north to the south.

Bronze mirrors in the Spring and Autumn and Warring States period had a rapid and comprehensive development on the basis of the three generations (Xia, Shang and Zhou). Both the casting process of copper mirror, or the number of casting, are greatly more than before.

Qijia culture and the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, copper mirror to light without decoration, the majority of those who have decoration is also mainly geometric pattern. To the Spring and Autumn and Warring States, decoration has reached 15 categories, and the emergence of a variety of special crafts and decorative arts, such as paint Zhu painted color patterns, gold and silver wrong patterns, hollow carved patterns. Initial period of simple, rough copper mirror, after the Spring and Autumn and Warring States period of creation and modification has reached a beautiful situation.

Spring and Autumn bronze mirror style, both inherited the Western Zhou bronze mirror tradition, such as still mainly plain mirror, button system is not stereotyped, or diversified forms. At the same time, the Spring and Autumn bronze mirror has many important developments. It broke the bronze mirror only round format, the emergence of square mirror; and a change in the early bronze mirror decoration only with Yang line outlined, simple and simple composition of the technique, the casting of the carving through the redundant pattern; from the expression of decoration, spring and autumn bronze mirrors have caught up with the pace of the development of the bronze, the content of the pattern is more contemporary characteristics. This gives the big development of the Warring States bronze mirror laid the foundation.

Middle and late Spring and Autumn to the early Warring States. This period appeared and popular mirrors are: plain mirror (full plain mirror, single circle, double circle convex string plain mirror), pure ground pattern mirror (square is rare, the pattern have ground pattern, but no inscription), flower and leaf mirror, four mountain mirror, multi-knob mirror and so on. Most of the mirrors are round, but also appeared square mirror. Generally, the mirror body material is thin, mostly with edges. The whole modeling rules, giving a sense of lightness and elegance. Mirror knob is mainly bow-shaped knob, but the top of the knob is decorated with 1 to 3 convex string pattern, so it is also known as "string pattern knob". The back of the mirror is plain and undecorated, except for the early period, it has disappeared. The decoration is thinly engraved, and there are many ground patterns.

In the middle of the Warring States period, there are many types of copper mirrors. Copper mirror decorations have also changed, such as the leaf mirror in the leaf mirror from simple three leaves, four leaves to eight leaves, but also appeared in the cloud and thunder pattern ground petal mirror, flower and leaf mirror. Four mountain mirror of the mountain word from short and thick become thin, in the mountain word with petal pattern, long leaf pattern, rope pattern, quite elaborate. Also appeared five mountain mirror, six mountain mirror. At this time, the emergence of mirrors have diamond mirror, beasts and animals mirror, coiled chi dragon mirror, even the arc mirror, gold and silver wrong mirror, painted mirror and so on.

The late Warring States period to the Qin did not appear four leaves coiled chi dragon mirror, coiled chi dragon diamond mirror, there are three layers of patterns of cloud and thunder pattern coiled chi dragon even arc pattern mirror.

Copper mirrors in the Han Dynasty

Han Dynasty in addition to continue to use the Warring States mirror, the most popular copper mirrors are: coiled chi dragon mirror, coiled venomous mirror, Zhangcao mirror, nebulae mirror, Yunlei Liancheng mirror, bird and beast pattern rules mirror, heavy columns of beasts and goddesses mirror, Liancheng pattern inscriptions mirror, heavy circle inscription mirror, four milk birds and beasts mirror, more milk birds and beasts mirror, the deformation of the four-leaf mirror, the beasts and goddesses mirror, the portrait mirror, dragon and tiger mirror, the sunshine Liancheng mirror, four-milk god mirror, seven-milk mirror The mirror with four breasts, the mirror with seven breasts, the mirror with four gods and beasts, and so on.

The Han Dynasty is an important period in the development of China's copper mirror. The largest number of Han mirrors unearthed, the use of universal, Han mirrors not only in the number of more than the Warring States period, but also in the form of production and artistic expression of a great development. From its development trend, it can be divided into three major stages, with important changes appearing in the period of Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty, the period of Wang Mang at the end of Western Han Dynasty, and the middle of Eastern Han Dynasty.

The early Western Han Dynasty was a period of alternation between the Warring States Mirror and the Han Mirror. Until the middle of the Western Han Dynasty, around the time of Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty, some new types of mirrors became popular. These new types of mirrors on the development of later generations of bronze mirrors, play a role in the beginning and end.

Three Kingdoms, Two Jin Dynasty, and North and South Dynasties

According to the information of copper mirrors unearthed from archaeological excavations, the following types of copper mirrors were more popular in this period:

Shrine and animal mirrors: re-listed shinigami mirrors, encircling shinigami mirrors, and mirrors of Buddha and animals with painted texts.

Deformed four-leaf pattern mirror category: deformed four-leaf driving phoenix mirror, deformed four-leaf Buddha bird phoenix mirror, deformed four-leaf beast head mirror, double diamond pattern mirror, Rui beast mirror.

This time to the blue dragon, white tiger, Zhu Bird, Xuan Wu and the combination of beasts into the theme of ornamentation content. At this time the inscription due to the text is difficult to recognize. Although some of the inscriptions found in the mirror, but can recognize very few.

Wu mirror found most of the chronological inscription, there are yellow dragon also bird, Jianxing, five phoenix, Taiping, water security, Ganlu, Phoenix and other Sun-Wu years, the three kingdoms, the two jin, north and south dynasties, the emergence of a new mirror type is not much, mainly inherited from the style of the Han mirror. At this time there are not many types of bronze mirrors, the type of concentration, innovation is very little. At this time, the most widely circulated mirrors were those with sacred animals. Deformed four-leaf pattern mirrors with deformed four-leaf eight phoenix mirrors in the majority. From the perspective of the history of the development of copper mirror, this period is in a period of stagnation and decline.

Sui-Tang Five Dynasties period

Tang Dynasty is China's copper mirror development history, another new historical period. Sui and Tang Dynasty copper mirror, compared with the previous generation has a new development. In the copper alloy increased tin content, in the texture of the copper mirror will appear silver, both beautiful and applicable. In the shape of the mirror, in addition to continue to follow the previous generation of round, square, but also created a diamond flower type and thicker birds and beasts grape pattern mirror. And to reflect the people's life and people's pursuit of ideals, auspicious, happy images applied to the mirror, such as the moon palace, immortals, landscapes and so on. And the emergence of a novel theme, beautiful pattern, meticulous gold and silver flat off the mirror, studded mirror. This is the product of the high artistic level of the Tang Dynasty, fully displaying the characteristics of the Tang Dynasty copper mirror.

The development of copper mirrors in the Sui and Tang dynasties has gone through three stages. Sui dynasty and the early years of the Tang dynasty, the theme of the bronze mirror decoration to the beasts, the beasts of the mirror is more prevalent, beasts of the mirror is an important type of the development process of the Sui and Tang dynasty. In addition to inheriting the tradition of ancient Chinese bronze mirrors, there are new innovations. Rui beast grape mirror is the Tang mirror striking mirror class, it opened the prelude to the Tang dynasty mirror theme decoration.

Tang Gaozong to Tang Dezong period, copper mirror decoration on the emergence of new forms, new themes, new styles, so that the copper mirror into the rich and colorful era.

Tang Dezong to the late Tang and the Five Dynasties period, the main popularity of the bird mirror, Ruihua mirror, Panlong mirror.

One of the most important features of Tang Dynasty mirrors is the diversity of artistic styles or artistic techniques. Bronze mirror art also presents a strong "Tang Dynasty weather".

Song, Liao and Jin copper mirror

Chinese copper mirror in the Tang Dynasty before, mainly round, rarely square. After the Song Dynasty in addition to inheriting the past round, square, sunflower-shaped, rhombus-shaped, sunflower-shaped, rhombus-shaped mirrors to six sunflower for the most common. Their edges are different from the Tang Dynasty, some are straighter, forming hexagonal mirrors. There are also a variety of styles such as mirrors with handles, rectangular, chicken heart-shaped, shield-shaped, bell-shaped tripod. And there are a lot of flowers,

birds and animals, landscapes, bridges, platforms and people story decorative themes of bronze mirrors, as well as plain mirrors, narrow knobs without decorative mirrors, these themes have a strong sense of life. In addition, there are some gods and goddesses, character story mirror and gossip mirror.

Jin Dynasty copper mirror from the recent decades of archaeological excavations unearthed in the Jin Dynasty copper mirror, its body, decoration is also very rich. Although many are imitated Han, Tang and Song dynasties of copper mirror workmanship, but there are also some unique patterns. Commonly, there are double front mirror, historical figures story mirror, disk dragon

mirror, Rui beast mirror, Rui flower mirror, and so on. Jin Dynasty bronze mirror decoration, one is modeled after the Han, Tang, Song Dynasty bronze mirror pattern; two is absorbed the former pattern, and create some new patterns. To double fish mirror, character story mirror is more common, especially the double fish mirror, child climbing mirror is the most popular.

Yuan Dynasty bronze mirror

Yuan Dynasty bronze mirror, more than six rhombus-shaped or six sunflower form, but the decoration has been gradually rough and simple. At this time there are twining peony mirror, fairy mirror, character story mirror, double dragon mirror, "Shoushan Fuhai" inscription mirror, plain mirror, to the Yuan four years dragon mirror. The Ming dynasty has the Hongwu years of the dragon mirror and the Ming Xuande years of the system of inscription mirror (inscription on the knob), and the end of the Ming dynasty uprising leader Li Zicheng three years of the creation of the Dashun three years of the mirror (inscription on the knob). After the Ming Dynasty, copper mirrors were gradually replaced by glass mirrors.

Bronze mirrors after the Yuan and Ming Dynasties

After the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, the production of copper mirrors is more declining, in addition to the traditional style, double-fish pattern, double-dragon pattern, the story of the characters, such as Liu Yi Zhuanshu and so on, is the more novel style. But this time the production of copper mirror rough, more only chronological inscription and no decoration. In this period, especially in the Ming Dynasty, imitation of Han and Tang mirror style is very prevalent, most of the imitation of copper mirrors is the Han Dynasty six Bo pattern mirror and the Tang Dynasty Ruibeast grapes mirror, imitation of copper mirrors are generally smaller, fuzzy decorations, there is no Han, Tang copper mirror of the past.