The Desborough Mirror
- Gallery: Room 50
- Culture: Iron Age
- Date: 50 BC - AD 50 (circa)
- Object type: mirror
- Materials: bronze
- Museum number: 1924,0109.1
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
Before you is "The Desborough Mirror," a stunning piece of Iron Age craftsmanship. This bronze mirror is composed of three separate parts: a cast handle, the mirror plate itself, and a decorative strip that wraps around the edge. The back of the mirror is intricately engraved with a symmetrical lyre-shaped design, flanked by coils — patterns so precise they may have been drawn using compasses.
The mirror's polished surface once reflected the user's image, making it both a practical and symbolic object in a world where mirrors were rare. Engraved textures like basket weaving and hatching add depth and visual complexity to the design.
This mirror exemplifies La Tène art, a style sometimes called "Celtic." Only a few of these decorated mirrors have ever been found — mostly in British graves from 100 BC to AD 100. It's a truly unique artifact of its time.
See it in person
The Desborough Mirror is on display in Room 50 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and take a photo of it to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
New, in beta. British Museum support has just launched and is still improving: over 1,000 objects so far, with more added all the time.
