The mirror has an eight-lobed sunflower shape with a round knob. The main design features a background with three auspicious clouds encircling a dragon motif. The outer zone is decorated with branching flowers and flowing clouds. The inscription includes the two characters 千秋 “Qianqiu” (Thousand Autumns), which are related to the Tang Dynasty festival “Qianqiu Festival”. Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, Li Longji, designated his birthday, the fifth day of the eighth lunar month, as the Qianqiu Festival, and often bestowed bronze mirrors on princes and high-ranking ministers on this day.
The Qianqiu mirrors, also called dragon mirrors, are mentioned in “On the Qianqiu Festival Bestowing Mirrors to Officials”, which states: “Casting the Qianqiu mirrors, their radiance flows like pure gold. They will be distributed among the nobles, like a clear wind carrying images.”
by yuzhouren