THE AKT OF CASTING BRONZE IN JAPAN. 611 



ally witli gold and sometimes with silver. The bells, which are of the 

 form called by the Japanese "suzu," are simple hollow spheres with a 

 slit cut in the lower half, and contain a loose piece of metal or a small 

 round pebble to serve the purpose of a tongue. They rarely occur 

 singly, but are usually cast in groups on the edges of a flat support, 

 furnished with a hole and tang for attachment probably to a staff or in 

 some cases to the trappings of a horse. They appear also to have been 

 used as ornamental appendages to garments and the hilts of swords. 



Several plates illustrating their forms and use are exhibited. The 

 mirrors are the earliest examples of art castings found in Japan. Many 

 are decorated with very elaborate designs, and the excellence displayed 

 in the execution of all denotes a very advanced stage in the art of 

 molding and casting. Some are undoubtedly Chinese, and others are 

 probably native copies of the Obiuese designs, but not a few are of true 

 Japanese workmanship. An engraving of a mirror bearing a date— the 

 dynastic title Wangmang — 9-23 A. D., is exhibited. 



The five mirrors from the province of Higo, in Kijushu, shown in the 

 lantern slide, are said by Japanese archaeologists to be of Chinese origin. 

 It is impossible to assign an exact date to the older specimens ; the 

 curator of the Imperial Museum, Tokyo, attributes the Chinese forms 

 to the period Han (25-220 A. D.), and I am inclined to agree with him 

 in this attribution. Three specimens (Gowland collection, British 

 Museum), which I obtained from the province of Yamato, were associ- 

 ated with "magatama" and other very ancient stone ornaments, and are 

 probably not later than the above iieriod. These are almost certainly 

 Jai)anese. The simple geometric designs with which they are decorated 

 bear no relation to the more elaborate patterns seen on Chinese forms. 



The largest castings of the early Iron age are curious bell-shaped 

 objects which are of special interest from their form and archaic orna- 

 ment. It has been conjectured that they are temple bells, but they 

 l^i-esent no points of resemblance to these or to any instrument or object 

 connected with the ceremonies or observances of Buddhism, and are, in 

 fact, of earlier date than the introduction of that religion into the coun- 

 try. Moreover, none show any signs of having been hung. A consider- 

 able number have been found — always buried in the ground — chiefly 

 in Yamato, Kawachi, Totomi, and the neighboring provinces. 



As early as 669 A. B. the discovery of one is recorded, and this was 

 even then regarded as being of such a great antiquity that it was pre- 

 sented to the Emperor. The designs with which they are ornamented — 

 the simple geometric line patterns common to many i)rimitive races — 

 are also evidences of their great age. They vary in dimensions from 

 1 or 2 inches to 5J feet in height, those measuring 1 foot 6 inches to 3 

 feet being most common, and all are of extreme thinness compared with 

 their size. Their exact use is still a subject of dispute among archae- 

 ologists. 



The example shown in the illustration (PI. LXIV) measures 4 feet 6 



