Hand Mirror

New Kingdom, Dynasty 18 (about 1550–1295 BCE)

Egyptian

The round disk of this hand mirror was originally polished to a reflective sheen. The elegant shape of the handle references papyrus plants that grew in Egypt’s marshy regions. Together, the handle and disk evoke an image of the sun rising from a papyrus umbel (flower cluster), a symbol of the sun’s daily regeneration. The ancient Egyptian words for mirror and life are homonyms, so this object’s shape also playfully refers to the ankh hieroglyph used to write both words.

Status: On View, Gallery 50
Department: Arts of Africa

Culture: Ancient Egyptian
Title: Hand Mirror
Place: Egypt (Object made in)
Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.: 1550 BCE–1295 BCE
Medium: Copper alloy
Dimensions: 20 × 10.3 × 2.2 cm (7 7/8 × 4 1/16 × 7/8 in.)
Credit Line: Gift of Henry H. Getty and Charles L. Hutchinson
Reference Number: 1894.725
IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world. Learn more.: https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/835/manifest.json

Thomas George Allen, A Handbook of the Egyptian Collection (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago, 1923), p. 109 (ill.)

Art Institute of Chicago, Life and Afterlife in Ancient Egypt, Feb. 11, 2022 - present.

Reverend Chauncey Murch (1859-1907), Luxor, Egypt; sold to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1894; price reimbursed by Henry H. Getty and Charles L. Hutchinson, 1894.

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Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

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IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world. Learn more.

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IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.