The mirror is round, with round knob. The inner area of the mirror back is arranged in a regular manner. The carved four beasts possess different shapes. The inscription in the outer zone carries a 32-word inscription: “Ling Shan Yun Bao, Shen Shi Guan Lu, Xing Yuan Xiao Yue, Guang Qing Ye Zhu, Yu Tai Xi Shi, Hong Zhuang Ying Tu, Qian Jiao Ji Ying, Bai Fu Lai Fu. (Spiritual mountain brings treasure; envoy of god offers favour, giving shape of which is round like luminous moon, reflection of which is clear like illuminating orb. This mirror is like jade plate rare to see, with belles’ silhouettes gathered upon. So does auspice, coming to service.)”
Mirrors decorated with auspicious animals are very popular in the Sui and Tang dynasties. The decorations are generally four animals, sometimes five, six, or eight ones. Auspicious animals are plump and healthy, walking and jumping, full of vitality. From the shape, it is difficult to know exactly what kind of animals they are. This kind of mirror can also be subdivided into mirrors with auspicious animals and inscription belt and mirrors with auspicious animals and plants. Mirrors with inscription belt found so far are mostly in the Sui and Tang Wude period, and are occasionally found in Zhenguan and Gaozong period. The initial content of the inscription was mainly auspicious words for longevity and promotion. Later, most of the inscriptions praised the quality of the mirror and the dressing-up in the boudoir. During the period of Gaozong, the inscription in the outer areas disappeared and was replaced with curly grass, honeysuckle, and grapevine branches. Diamond patterns also began to appear as a decorative structure of bronze mirror.
“Taiping Guangji · Wang Du (Taiping Miscellany: Wang Du)” tells about a Marquis of Fenyin, during the Sui Dynasty, who just before his death presented an old mirror to a man named Wang Du. He said to the man, “This mirror will keep all evil at a distance.” The knob of that mirror is made as a crouching kylin, surrounded by the four gods of tortoise, dragon, phoenix and tiger. The outside of the four gods is the pattern of the Eight Diagrams. Obviously, it can be categorized into the mirrors with four gods and zodiac animals popular in the early Sui and Tang dynasties.