Mirror with a Pair of Addorsed Sphinxes with Scorpion Tails

Art Historical Context

This exquisite bronze mirror, crafted in the 12th–13th, hails from the Islamic world and showcases the era's mastery of metal casting. Measuring just 4⅛ inches in diameter but weighing a substantial 8.8 ounces, its thick, disc-like form features a pair of addorsed sphinxes—mythical creatures with human heads, leonine bodies, and unusual scorpion tails—arranged back-to-back on the reverse. Produced through lost-wax casting, a technique allowing intricate details like the beasts' flowing manes and segmented tails, this mirror was likely a luxury item for personal grooming or as a status symbol among elites. In Islamic art of this period, fantastical hybrids like sphinxes blended Persian, Byzantine, and Central Asian influences, symbolizing power, protection, or the supernatural. The scorpion tails add a fierce, apotropaic edge, possibly warding off evil spirits—a common motif in medieval metalwork. Such mirrors reflect the cultural crossroads of the Abbasid or Seljuk realms, where everyday objects became canvases for imaginative iconography. Now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Islamic Art Department, thanks to the 1915 bequest of Mary Anna Palmer Draper, this rare piece invites us to ponder the blend of beauty and mysticism in medieval daily life.