While plumbing the archives at the Cincinnati Art Museum, curator Hou-mei Sung uncovered what appeared to be an ordinary bronze mirror (prior to the development of glass mirrors, people often used polished bronze to see their reflection). After closer inspection, she realized that when a light was shone on it, the mirror revealed a hidden image of a spiritual figure surrounded by rays. Often called a “Magic Mirror,” this extremely rare work is part of a small collection of similar objects that date back to the Han dynasty (202 BCE to 220 CE)—only a few similar Buddhist pieces from China and Japan are thought to exist.
via Colossal