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Identifying mirrors

Polished metal discs.

Ancient mirrors are polished bronze or speculum (a high-tin bronze that is silvery-white and brittle) — discs with a decorated back and a tang or loop for a handle. Corrosion usually destroys the reflective face; the back carries the evidence.

Etruscan and Roman mirrors often bear engraved mythological scenes on the back — worth photographing in raking light, which lifts shallow engraving the eye misses.

Medieval mirrors are different objects: small glass discs in lead-tin cases, the cases often found without their glass and mistaken for badges or mounts.

Speculum fragments are sharp-edged and brittle — handle with care. Record diameter, what survives of tang or handle, and the back’s decoration; the shape and scene place the piece.

From the guide library inside Collectors Catalogues, a free app for cataloguing antiques and finds with honest, museum-grade records.

More on domestic objects

Identifying oil lamps — Nozzle, filling hole, and mold.

Identifying clay tobacco pipes — Bowl shape and heel marks.

Identifying agricultural tools — Sickles, billhooks, plough irons, and the seasons written in iron.

Identifying fishing gear — Hooks, net weights, and line sinkers from rivers, lakes, and coasts.

Identifying spindle whorls and loom weights — The flywheels and tensioners of home textile production.

Identifying styli and writing equipment — Iron pens, wax spatulas, and the tools of everyday literacy.

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