Chapter 1,798 Mysterious Magic Mirror, 100 million mirrors
Generally speaking, the bronze material is quite strong and it is impossible for light to pass through the entire bronze mirror.
Even reflection is a natural phenomenon occurring on a relatively flat mirror surface;
Speaking of this, some friends may have begun to guess randomly. Does this bronze mirror possess ancient magic, or is it made by the special craftsmanship of the ancients?
To answer this question, we must first find the answer from historical data.
According to historical records, bronze mirrors first appeared in the Warring States Period and flourished in the Western Han Dynasty.
Especially in the Han Dynasty, "mirrors with inscriptions" became a major category of bronzes in the Western Han Dynasty;
Taking the "circle inscription mirror" as an example, the main decorative pattern is mostly ring-shaped inscriptions, which can be divided into single-circle inscription mirrors and double-circle inscription mirrors.
Ancient bronze mirrors can be divided into Zhaoming mirror, Sunlight mirror, Qingbai mirror, Tonghua mirror, Riyouxi mirror, etc. according to the inscription content.
Among them, the most common ones are Zhaoming and Riguang, most of which are small mirrors with a Han ruler less than six inches. Currently, the largest number has been discovered and the widest distribution.
In terms of production techniques, ancient bronze mirrors are mostly round, with the surface polished to be relatively smooth and flat, and patterns often cast on the back;
The patterns on the back also include character stories, flowers, butterflies, birds and beasts, etc.
I have known for a long time that there are not many kinds of bronze mirrors in ancient China, and very few have survived to this day. However, I really didn’t expect that I could see so few kinds of bronze mirrors at one time.
Looking at the back alone, ancient mirrors from the Warring States Period mostly feature geometric or animal patterns.
The key point is that, although in terms of craftsmanship and floral decoration, the ancient mirrors of the Han Dynasty look a little "this way".
And for thousands of years, it has been regarded as a "divine object";
This cannot be understood as “if the heating and solidification time is the same, the thickness and curvature will be different, resulting in the phenomenon of bronze light transmission”;
In fact, experts have never had such a problem, but after checking the information, they found that the ancients had already discovered that "magic" bronze mirror.
Bronze mirror is an ancient utensil made of bronze, and it is also an exquisite handicraft.
Where there are no inscriptions or patterns, it is relatively thin.
The difference in curvature corresponds to the pattern. When light hits the mirror, the reflected light from the part with smaller curvature is concentrated, and the projection is darker.
Of course, modern experts have also not studied the "sunlight" mirror, and they seem to have uncovered the light transmission fog that has troubled the ancients for thousands of years;
When wanting to find this very precious mirror, Chen Wenzhe first thought of something other than a museum.
Before I could understand it through research, I thought that the bronze mirror was not a magic mirror but a treasure.
On that point, we really need to learn from the ancients.
Moreover, the floral decorations before the Han Dynasty will become more and more complicated, and their production will naturally be more sophisticated than those in the Han Dynasty;
It seems more "simple" to say that. In short, the research results of modern experts are basically the same as the explanations in "Mengxi Bi Tan".
That question is a bad answer, because it is difficult to copy in modern times. In fact, scientists for thousands of years have been retroactively copying;
So, it's not much more "mysterious".
Because of an accident, Chen Wenzhe discovered that there was no damaged light-transmitting mirror in Yangluo, Nanhe.
"Scientists" for thousands of years have never studied ancient light-transmitting mirrors.
To put it simply, the inscriptions and patterns on the back of the "Mirror of Light Seeking the Sun" are relatively thick.
This was discovered by modern experts and was probably just an accidental phenomenon in the casting process of ancient craftsmen.
According to historical records, since the Shang and Zhou dynasties, the ancients have used polished bronze to make mirrors, which are bright and can shine on people, with exquisite patterns on the back.
Further development, in addition to the circular format, rhombus shapes, square shapes, etc. also appeared.
I said so little, but I don't actually want to explain that the production of bronze mirrors in the past dynasties was poor or less.
Taking the Xiaohai Museum as an example, there are currently less than 10,000 bronze mirrors in its collection.
However, that is simply necessary.
In the words of experts: For more than a thousand years, that magical phenomenon has attracted many scholars in ancient and modern times.
Where the curvature is large, the reflected light is concentrated and the projection is brighter. This results in no brighter inscriptions or patterns appearing in the reflected image.
But there are only seven that can show the light-transmitting effect, and they are all products of the Han Dynasty.
Of course, I will definitely be able to get this restored mirror. I can only learn the craftsmanship of the ancients. I cannot even learn the top modern craftsmanship of repairing bronzes.
Modern people have studied this for a long time before they understood it.
It was already very popular during the Warring States Period, and became even more exquisite during the Han and Tang Dynasties. "Mengxi Bi Tan" records that "this is because when casting, the thin parts are heated first, but the text on the back is thicker. The front is heated and the copper shrinks. Although the text is on the back, the copper shrinks.
The mirror is invisible, so it appears in the light."
I'd definitely like to see it if I'm looking for a favor.
In the Song Dynasty, hand-held mirrors with handles also appeared.
Perhaps no one has asked again, is it true that only modern experts have discovered the light transmission effect of ancient mirrors?
Among them, the "Light of the Sun" mirror is the worst preserved and has the most obvious effect.
First of all, the difference in thickness or curvature on the outside is very small and difficult to detect with the naked eye. At first glance, it still seems to be flat;
Moreover, the top-notch ancient bronze mirrors in your country, the most expensive of which is said to cost 100 million yuan, are not available elsewhere.
It is precisely because the thickness is uniform that the bronze mirror produces casting stress.
The "Light of Seeing the Sun" mirror behind the eyes is kept in the Xiaohai Museum. Naturally, Chen Wenzhe can use it to study it, even if I have a chance to take a look.
However, bronze mirrors that can transmit light only appeared in the Han Dynasty.
The most important thing is that people have researched it.
Speaking of which, maybe no one is convinced. Experts haven’t explained it yet. Besides, modern technology is far more advanced than ancient times. How could it be possible to create it?
From the middle of the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Wei and Jin Dynasties, relief mirrors of mythical animals and portrait mirrors appeared.
For example, Shen Kuo from the Song Dynasty did not explain it in detail in his "Mengxi Bi Tan" written by me.
And elastic deformation occurs during mirror grinding, so the curvature is large in thick areas and relatively small in thin areas.
But some people can use experimental methods to confirm their guesses.
In the Tang Dynasty, flat mirrors, mother-of-pearl mirrors, etc. appeared.
What's amazing is that despite the "scientific" explanation given by experts, bronze mirrors with similar effects can still be created with today's technology.
Unfortunately, there is no such thing in the museum, so I have to think of another way.
But it also shows the wisdom and superb skills of the ancient ancestors. That may not be the main reason why it is called the "magic mirror";
First, I came to a private exhibition hall, where there were only a few bronze scrolls on display.
Or to be more precise, has anyone actually copied the mirror that is exactly the same as the ancient light-transmitting mirror of the Western Han Dynasty?
Apart from this, Qing Dynasty scholar Zheng Fuguang also had no similar explanation.
Various reasons led to my trip to Nanhe, and my hard work on that trip was indeed in vain.
As I said above, I just learned four small fine gold craftsmanships, which is not a small gain.
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