Mirror with the Eleven-Headed Bodhisattva Kannon

The surface of this bronze mirror is engraved with the image of the deity Ekadasamukha. The surface of this bronze mirror has a hairline engraving of the Eleven-Headed Bodhisattva Kannon. The back of the mirror features cast three-dimensional depictions of bush clovers, butterflies, birds and flowing water, all traditionally popular motifs in Japan. An inscription above the motifs lists a date corresponding to 1159 in the Western calendar. The surface format, the composition of the bush clover pattern, and the gentle depiction of Kannon are all characteristic features of mirrors from the late 12th century, so it appears the mirror and the engraving were indeed made around 1159. Mirrors with hairline engravings of Buddhist and Shinto deities first emerged in Japan in the 10th century. The mirrors were placed in miniature shrines or hung from ropes to serve as objects of worship. There are several theories as to why images were incised onto bronze mirrors, but one theory involves the blending of Buddhism and Shintoism in Japan.

Shinto deities were worshipped in Japan since ancient times and it was believed these deities resided in bronze mirrors. The arrival of Buddhism on Japan's shores led to a growing belief that each Shinto deity corresponded to a specific Buddhist deity. This led to the practice of depicting Buddhist images on mirrors, which themselves represented Shinto deities. With a hairline engraving on a plain bronze surface, this is a typical example of this type of mirror. During the later 12th century, people also began to make simple copper plates with images engraved in lines or carved in relief. From the 13th century onwards, the images grew more three-dimensional and it became standard practice to make the round plaques and images separately before fixing them together.

— Museum description: Tokyo National Museum (CC BY 4.0), via ColBase / Japan Search.