The Date of the TLV Mirrors from the Xiongnu Tombs Guolong Lai University of Florida, Gainesville (USA) Photo © Daniel C. Waugh 2005 In the summer of 2005, the square center field (also Silkroad Foundation and the called knob-seat), which is Mongolian National University decorated with a large, Fig. 3. TLV mirror fragments conducted their first season of joint simple quatrefoil. The main from Feature 109, Tamir 1 excavation at a Xiongnu cemetery decorative zone is framed site. in Arkhangai aimag in Central between the center square Mongolia. Among their findings and two outer bands, one a were three bronze mirrors. After narrow band with a comb-tooth cast inscription (Fig. 4), which describing them, I shall focus in pattern and the other a wide rim reads: this short essay on the first two, ornamented with three concentric … do not know aging; when TLV mirrors of Chinese rings with a saw-tooth pattern. thirsty, [they] drink from the provenance. My goal will be to Four pairs of T’s and L’s are placed spring of jade; when hungry, establish their date in the context on two perpendicular axes through [they] eat of jujubes. [They] of a broader discussion of the the mirror’s center point, while the roam… problems of dating bronze mirrors four inverted Vs are located at the but not to attempt an examination upper outside corners of the four of other issues such as Han- quadrants thus created. On the left According to similar inscriptions Xiongnu relations. and right sides of each T are placed (see below), it appears that these two nipples; two birds, in elegant descriptions refer to the immortals The first specimen from Feature simple relief, stand on either side dwelling in a transcendental 100 is a beautifully decorated of each inverted V. Furthermore, paradise. Mirrors of this type are intact mirror about 10 centimeters comma-shaped curves and short significant not only because they in diameter (Fig. 1, facing page). lines punctuate the spaces It belongs to a type referred to as between these elements. The ‘TLV’ mirrors in Western Sinological overall design of the mirror is literature, because the shapes of perfectly symmetrical, simple, and the main decorative elements on elegant. the back of the mirrors resemble the Latin letters T, L, and V. At the The second specimen (this one center of the back of the mirror is from Feature 109) is a fragment a hemispherical knob pierced for of another TLV mirror, further a ribbon or textile cord, to facilitate broken into two pieces that were the holding of the mirror (Fig. 2). found in different locations in the The knob is surrounded by a tomb (Fig. 3). The main decorative zone is largely missing; only one corner of the fragment has the elements of the L and V and a pair of birds with long tails. This mirror is larger than the one excavated from Feature 100. Unlike the intact one from Photo © Daniel C. 2005 Waugh Feature 100, this Photo © Daniel C. 2005 Waugh fragmentary mirror Fig. 2. Center of TLV mirror from Feature 100, bears a section of a Fig. 4. Section of TLV mirror from seen from an angle. Feature 109, showing inscription. 37 collections and scholarship on bronze mirrors, the museums (Bulling TLV mirror consists of the basic and Drew 1971-72). motifs of the letters T, L, and V. They used to be referred to as The problems guiju mirrors in Chinese literature with these sources (J: kiku), because it was have been further considered that the V and L exasperated by the resembled the compass (gui) and preference of col- a carpenter’s square (ju). Early lectors for mirrors scholarship focused on the with inscriptions connections between the TLV containing dates, mirror and the sundial (Yetts 1939, which in turn only pp. 148-165) and between the TLV Photo © Daniel C. 2005 Waugh encouraged the mirror and the diviner’s board (shi) Fig. 5. Detail of mirror from Feature 160, Tamir 1 production of fake site. (Kaplan 1937), for several dated mirrors. As a specimens of sundials and diviner’s represent the best specimens of result of this situ- boards were available for bronze production in the Han ation, the mirror chronologies have comparison at the time. period, but also because their been skewed, because of the inscriptions reflect changing reliance of scholars on inscriptions As many scholars later realized, religious ideas in early China. with dates (Loewe 2001-2). Many however, these motifs actually distinguished scholars, including constitute the board of an ancient The third mirror, from Feature the Japanese scholar Umehara game called liubo, a popular 160, is about 7 centimeters in Sueji, who were connoisseurs of pastime among the elite during the diameter (Fig. 5). It is intact, but Chinese mirrors, were clearly Warring States and Han periods its craftsmanship is rather poor, aware of the situation and had paid (Yang 1947; Komai 1953). Thus compared with that of the other particular attention to the issues scholars have suggested that the two. The decorative scheme is of forgery. Yet in the end, they too TLV mirrors should be renamed as barely discernible. Only a small were occasionally duped by fakes. boju, ‘game board,’ mirrors (Zhou knob is found at the center of the Fortunately, in the last half 1987). But the Japanese scholar mirror back. This type of mirror century, many bronze mirrors have Hayashi Minao commendably seen in Xiongnu tombs is most been discovered under scien- insisted that although the TLV likely a low-quality, local imitation tifically-controlled archaeological pattern shared many similarities of Han mirrors. excavations in China. It is now with the liubo game board, it is not possible to establish a chronology a game board per se; rather the The chronology of bronze of bronze mirrors solely based on TLV mirror, the liubo game board, mirrors, along with dating by archaeological materials. Since the and the sundial, all share the same coinage and pottery vessels buried 1950s, all studies of Han mirrors cosmographical symbolism in tombs, have been important have incorporated, to different (Hayashi 1989, pp. 8-9; also methods used in cross-dating early degrees, the newly available Cammann 1948, pp. 160-1). It Chinese and Xiongnu burials. archaeological materials (Loewe now becomes clear from However, the dating of bronze 1979); yet so far no systematic archaeological evidence that there mirrors is a thorny issue for and methodologically rigorous was more than one type of liubo scholars of Chinese art and study that utilizes exclusively game board in early China, and the archaeology. Almost all of the excavated specimens has been configuration of those are slightly existing chronologies have attempted. We will have to wait to different from that of the TLV included in their studies clearly see how significantly an mirrors (it has only four V’s and spurious pieces or other mirrors of archaeologically-based new two L’s, and six I’s; see Li 2002). dubious origins (Umehara 1943, chronology would differ from the Thus it is inappropriate to equate Bulling 1960, Okamura 1984 and extant chronologies. Though a full the liubo game boards with the TLV 1993, except Zhou 1986; see also reinvestigation of the chronology motif. In current Japanese the discussion in Cammann 1961, of Han bronze mirrors is beyond literature, the TLV mirror is still Bulling 1962, Cammann 1962). the scope of this essay, some of called a kiku (Ch: guiju) mirror. For Bronze mirrors have been highly the issues involved in dating TLV convenience and consistency, and valued and collected since the mirrors will be mentioned below. because it is more descriptive North Song dynasty (960-1126). In my examination, I shall consider rather than interpretational, I shall As a result of their high value, only excavated materials. use TLV to refer to these mirrors forgeries and replicas have been throughout this essay. produced – some of which have Long having been the focus of found their way into private Japanese, Chinese and Western 38 Fig. 6. One of the six TLV coinage is often more accurate for mirrors excavated in dating the burials, because in Hunan (the largest, 14.4 many cases buried coinage is in cm). After Zhou 1986, No. large quantities and was the 2, p. 106. currency of the time. This type of TLV mirror lasted into Emperor and other princely Wu’s reign (140-87 BCE). A kingdoms of the Han famous example, with the same dynasty. Some of the inscription as the Hunan mirror, is earliest known ex- the one discovered in the tomb of amples are six inscribed Dou Wan (d. ca. 113 BCE) (Fig. bronze mirrors exca- 7), the consort of Emperor Wu’s vated from an early elder half-brother Liu Sheng (d. Western Han tomb in 113 BCE), at Mancheng in Hubei Hunan province (the province. largest d. 14.4 cm) (Fig. 6), in which TLV The TLV motif also appeared on mirrors with dragon other types of mirrors, such as the arabesque (panchi) so-called caoye ‘grass-leaf’ decoration were found mirrors, named after the leaf-like The TLV pattern appeared on with funerary coins — clay decoration found on the back of the the liubo game board earlier in the imitations of real coins of Emperor mirrors. The specimen in Fig. 8 is Warring States period, a mirror (d. 11.6 cm) discovered but it did not appear on in Tomb no. 23 in the Western Han- bronze mirrors until the period cemetery near Lou- early Han dynasty. The zhoucheng, Qichun, Hubei Swedish scholar Orvar province.