Box Mirror with Head of Athena
Unknown Artist
330–270 BCE
Medium
bronze, partially gilt
Dimensions
{"diameter":{"width":0.113}}
Classification
Metalwork
Department
Greek and Roman Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund
Accession Number
1972.66
About this artwork
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 ...