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Roman mirror from Baalbek

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Object number
AR2286
Object: Base plate of a Roman bronze mirror from Baalbek

Material: Bronze.

Period: 1st cent. AD to 3rd cent AD.
Roman Imperial period.

Description:    Base plate of a mirror in the shape of a dish. One side is decorated with concentric circles.

Background: Mirrors were common place in upper class Roman households. A metallic base plate made of lead or bronze was polished at one side and coated with a reflective layer of e.g. a lead silver alloy. The mirrors of especially wealthy households had additional incised decorations. Because the handles were soldered to the plate they were often lost already in antiquity. The thin reflective layer was lost over the passage of time, so that most archaeological finds today look like the piece presented here.

Dimensions: 85mm diameter.

Condition: Good condition. Bronze well preserved, only minor deformations and cracks at the rim. Nice green patina. Handle and reflective coating missing.

Provenance: Acquired by us in 2017 from the private posession of M. Voos, Germany. Inherited by M. Voos from the Germany private collection H. Herbst. Acquired in 1978 at Davies Antiques, London for the Herbst collection and brought to Germany (a copy of the original invoice is available). Baalbek is passed down as a find spot.

References: Cf. G. Zahlhaas, Die Sammlung Marie-Luise und Dr. Thomas Dexel, page 117, cat. 176 and 177.

Literature: A good introduction into the typology of mirrors with further literature recommendations is given by G. Lloyd-Morgan in The Mirrors. Description of the Collections in the Rijksmuseum G.M. Kam at Nijmegen IX (1981).

Authenticity: We unconditionally guarantee the authenticity of every artefact, all items are subject to our lifetime return policy on authenticity.