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Source Description
The ancient Greek box mirror resembles a modern, hinged makeup compact in design. While the actual mirror is the top of the bottom half of the box—a highly polished cast-bronze disk—the cover often bears relief decoration. This example features a helmeted head of Athena, a virgin war goddess not typically associated with implements of beauty. Several other aspects suggest that this Athena may have been repurposed from another object in antiquity: the striking difference in patina between relief and case; the irregular (noncircular) shape; and the method of attachment, with rivets through the relief rather than solder.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
147043
label
Box Mirror with Head of Athena (disk)
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
147043
contentType
object
title
Box Mirror with Head of Athena (disk)
description
The ancient Greek box mirror resembles a modern, hinged makeup compact in design. While the actual mirror is the top of the bottom half of the box—a highly polished cast-bronze disk—the cover often bears relief decoration. This example features a helmeted head of Athena, a virgin war goddess not typically associated with implements of beauty. Several other aspects suggest that this Athena may have been repurposed from another object in antiquity: the striking difference in patina between relief and case; the irregular (noncircular) shape; and the method of attachment, with rivets through the relief rather than solder.
date
330–270 BCE
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q60758212
genreSpecific
Metalwork
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Diameter: 11.3 cm (4 7/16 in.)
cul
Greece, Hellenistic period
accession
1972.66.b
Source extras
tec
bronze, partially gilt
tombstone
Box Mirror with Head of Athena (disk), 330–270 BCE. Greece, Hellenistic period. Bronze, partially gilt; diameter: 11.3 cm (4 7/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund, 1972.66.b
collection
GR - Greek
didYouKnow
Although now green rather than golden in color, this bronze disk was once polished to a reflective sheen.
creditline
Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund
sketchfabId
3c6fd48201894cfe85d740454d658fa5
updatedAt
2026-06-18 21:17:58.232000
sourceId
147043
dept
Greek and Roman Art
coll
GR - Greek
med
bronze, partially gilt
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
a659d982349a5f46