Name of the countries where the mirror was invented. Mirror (history of invention)
With the development of civilization, humanity began to use metals - silver, copper or gold - as mirrors. Discs were made from these metals, polished to a shine on one side. The reverse side of the discs was decorated with various decorations. But the metal ones had a big drawback - the image in them was cloudy and blurry.
The invention of the real mirror
The first glass mirror was in France. Franciscan John Peckham described a method of coating glass with a layer of tin in 1279. The production of mirrors was done using the following technology - a thin layer of molten tin was poured into a glass vessel. When the vessel cooled down, it was broken into pieces. Of course, the concave pieces gave a distorted image, but it was clear and . Handicraft mirror production first began in Holland in the 13th century. Then mirrors began to be made in Flanders and in the city of Nuremberg.Development of mirror production
In 1407, Venice bought the patent for the production of mirrors from the Flemings. For a century and a half, Venice had a monopoly in the production of mirrors. Venetian mirrors were of high quality and price. Venetian craftsmen added gold and bronze to reflective compositions. The reflection in such mirrors was more beautiful than reality. Such mirrors were very expensive; for the same amount you could buy a small ship.A breakthrough in the production of mirrors occurred at the beginning of the 16th century. Craftsmen from Murano were able to cut a hot glass vessel and roll it out on a copper tabletop. Thus, a mirror-like canvas was obtained - shiny and clean. Mirror sheets did not distort the image.
Since mirrors were very expensive, the French decided to organize their own production.
In the 17th century, the French were able to bribe craftsmen from Murano. The masters and their families were secretly taken to France. Having adopted the secrets of making mirrors, in 1665 the French opened the first mirror manufactory. After the opening of the manufactory, the price of mirror cloth decreased and became affordable for the majority of the population.
Where are mirrors used today?
Nowadays mirrors are used not only for appearance care. Interior decoration with mirror panels has become widespread. Mirrors are also used in lighting, scientific and optical instruments.In contact with
Classmates
It is clear that the very first mirror was an ordinary... puddle. But here’s the problem: you can’t take it with you and you can’t hang it on the wall at home.
People have always wanted to see their image. Long before the advent of mirrors, our ancestors tried to grind and polish a variety of materials. Stone (pyrite, ) and metal (gold, silver, bronze, tin, copper) were used. The oldest mirrors are about 5 thousand years old. These are usually gold or silver discs, highly polished on one side and with patterns on the other. To make it easier to look at, a handle was attached to the discs.
A completely new type of mirror - concave - appeared only in 1240, when they learned to blow glass vessels. The master blew a large ball, then poured molten tin into the tube (another method of joining metal with glass had not yet been invented), and when the tin spread in an even layer over the inner surface and cooled, the ball was broken into pieces. And please: you can look as much as you like, but it was, to put it mildly, a little distorted.
Medieval Venice was famous for the art of making glass mirrors. In 1291, all the glassmakers of this republic were moved to the island of Murano. The authorities explained that this was necessary for fire safety purposes, but in fact this was done to keep a stricter eye on glassmakers. Although they were highly respected and the title of glassmaker was considered no less honorable than the title of nobleman, the craftsmen were forbidden, under pain of death, to divulge the secrets of their craft. For quite a long time they were made and sold only in Venice. However, in the 17th century, France managed to master the secret of making Venetian glass. She was prompted to do this by the high cost of fashion products. According to the testimony of the French Minister of Finance Colbert, a Venetian mirror measuring 115 by 65 centimeters in a silver frame cost 68 thousand livres, while a painting by Raphael of the same format cost only 3 thousand! The minister believed that the country was threatened with ruin. This was not an exaggeration. French aristocrats, boasting to each other about their wealth, paid fortunes for them. On top of that, the queen appeared at one of the court balls in a dress strewn with pieces of mirrors. A dazzling radiance emanated from her, but this “splendor” cost the country too dearly. And Colbert decided to take extreme measures. He sent his confidants to the island of Murano. They bribed two craftsmen and secretly took them out in a small boat to France at night. Soon, the first mirror manufactory in Europe appeared in the French town of Tours la Ville.
It was in France that they came up with the idea of producing glass not by blowing, but by casting. Molten glass from the melting pot was poured onto a flat surface and rolled out with a roller. Flat glass was “wetted” with mercury and thus a thin layer of tin was glued to its surface.
In the Middle Ages, mirrors were not favored. Mirrors of that time - convex in shape with a dark surface - caused superstitious fear and were called nothing more than mirrors of witches. Every decent witch had in her arsenal not only a large cauldron for preparing potions, but also a small mirror. It was supposed to be fed by the light of the full moon, and hidden from the sun during the day. It was believed that with the help of this magical object a witch could cause damage and the evil eye, summon the devil and keep demons and evil spirits locked up.
The Inquisition looked at the mirrors with suspicion. Thus, in 1321, the maiden Beatrice de Planissol was accused of heresy and sentenced to life imprisonment only because a mirror was found among her belongings. The very fact of owning such a thing could lead a woman not only to prison, but also to the stake. Mirrors were also disliked in Rus' - until the 17th century they were not displayed, but were covered with taffeta or hidden in chests.
The mirror in the icon case, decorated with thin tin lace, was once given by Princess Sophia (ruler under the boy kings Ivan and Peter) to her dear friend Prince Golitsyn.
In 1689, on the occasion of the disgrace of the prince and his son Alexei, 76 mirrors were transferred to the treasury (mirror passions were already raging among the Russian nobility), but the prince hid the mirror of the princess and took it with him into exile in the Arkhangelsk region. After his death, the mirror, among other things, according to the prince’s will, ended up in a monastery near Pinega, survived and has survived to this day. Now it is kept in the collections of the Arkhangelsk Museum of Local Lore.
In Russia, during the era of Peter I, many new crafts emerged, including glass. The demand for window glass, mirrors and dishes was very great. In 1705, they began to build a manufactory on Vorobyovy Gory in Moscow - “a stone barn eighty-three feet long, ten arshins high, with a melting furnace made of white clay brick.” Other factories also appeared, and in Russia they made mirror glass of such enormous size that it caused surprise in many countries.
Various architectural styles and fashions changed, but the mirror always had a place. In the 14th century, strict Gothic was replaced by lush Baroque. Well, how can we do without mirrors? They were used both as decoration for walls and fireplaces in palaces, and as decoration for the modest homes of ordinary citizens. By the beginning of the 18th century, Baroque was replaced by Rococo, the most delicate and sophisticated style. Entire mirror rooms and galleries are being built here. In the Versailles Mirror Gallery, for example, 306 mirrors seemed to push the walls of the room apart and enhance the light coming from candles and chandeliers. Then Rococo gave way to strict classicism - mirrors began to decorate grand staircases, ballrooms, and living spaces. With the beginning of the twentieth century, mirrors lost their exoticism and became a common household item.
For a long time, a mirror has been considered a magical object, full of secrets and magic (and even evil spirits). It faithfully served and still serves the pagan cults of many nations, who see in it the cosmic power of the Sun.
Even the ancient Egyptians interpreted a cross turning into a circle as an erotic vital key. And many centuries later, during the European Renaissance, this symbol was seen as an image of a ladies’ dressing mirror with a handle, in which the goddess of love, Venus, loved to look at herself.
Another legend says that Preseus killed the Gargona Medusa using the mirror image of his shield. Her gaze was supposed to turn the hero into stone, but by shielding himself and not meeting Medusa’s gaze, he was able to cut off her head, seeing only her reflection.
The Japanese believe that all nations of the world owe it to the mirror that the sun rises every day on earth. According to an ancient myth, the sun goddess Amaterasu was deeply offended by her brother Susanoo and locked herself in a deep stone grotto. Without light and warmth, all life on earth began to die. Then, concerned about the fate of the world, the gods decided to lure the bright Amaterasu out of the cave. Knowing the curiosity of the goddess, they hung an elegant necklace on the branches of a tree standing next to the grotto, placed a mirror nearby and ordered the sacred rooster to crow loudly. At the cry of the bird, Amaterasu looked out of the grotto, saw the necklace, and could not resist the temptation to try it on. And I couldn’t help but look in the mirror to evaluate the decoration on myself. As soon as the bright Amaterasu looked into the mirror, the world was illuminated and remains so to this day. To this day, the mirror is included in the obligatory set of gifts for a Japanese girl who has reached the age of nine. It symbolizes honesty, integrity, integrity, and the fact that all women are still as curious as Amaterasu.
The object mirror was widely used in works of ancient Chinese literature. Ancient writers often compared the full moon, or an honest, noble husband, to a mirror. Sometimes the mirror served as a metaphor for a person of insightful mind with broad views of the world. The expression “The broken mirror is restored to its original form” denotes the happy reunion of a previously separated married couple.
This story happened in the 9th century AD, when the powerful Sui dynasty ruled in the north of China, and the south of the country was fragmented, there were many small specific kingdoms there. The state of Cheng with its capital Jiankang was just one of these appanage kingdoms. The Sui Dynasty had long wanted to annex the lands of Southern China to its possessions and was ready to attack the southern kingdoms at any moment.
Xu Deyan was the chamberlain of the Emperor of the State of Cheng named Cheng Shubao. Xu was married to the emperor's younger sister Princess Lechang. The young married couple lived in love and harmony and loved each other very much. Xu knew the situation in the kingdom well; he deeply felt the weakness of power and the decline of Cheng. He understood that the country was facing imminent destruction.
One day, saddened, he said to his wife: “Great unrest will soon begin in our kingdom. I will have to stand up for the emperor and then we will have to be separated. But if we are alive, we will definitely be together. While we are apart, we must leave the talisman as evidence of our feelings and hope for a future meeting.”
Princess LeChan was in complete agreement with her husband. And then Xu Deyan brought one bronze mirror and split it into two parts, keeping one part for himself and giving the other to his wife, ordering her to keep it carefully. Xu told her that if they separated for a long time, then on the 15th of the 10th month according to the lunar calendar, she should ask the servant to sell half of the mirror at the market. He will definitely come to his beloved’s call and, with the help of his fragment, will restore the mirror. So they will be together again.
The number of superstitions associated with mirrors in Russia is second only to the number of Chinese superstitions on the same subject. In different regions of Russia, the traditions of using mirrors in fortune telling have acquired directly opposite signs. In the south, love is bewitched on a black mirror, in the northern provinces - the disease of an enemy. They agree on only one thing: breaking a mirror means death or at least seven years of misfortune. Few people know a simple and effective way to “disown” future troubles. The broken mirror must be buried with honor, sincerely apologizing to it for your clumsiness.
There are beliefs and myths that vampires and ghosts are not reflected in the mirror. Perhaps this is due to the fact that in ancient times people believed that mirrors not only reflect a person’s appearance, but also his soul, and can also store it within themselves. Thus, according to legend, vampires, deprived of souls, could not be reflected in mirrors.
In Rus', mirrors were endowed with magical properties: not a single Christmas fortune-telling was complete without a smooth mirror surface, repeating the trembling of a candle light. Young girls tried to see their betrothed in the reflection.
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In Rus', almost until the end of the 17th century, a mirror was considered an overseas sin. Pious people avoided him. The Church Council of 1666 prohibited clergy from keeping mirrors in their homes.
It is clear that the very first mirror was an ordinary... puddle. But here’s the problem: you can’t take it with you and you can’t hang it on the wall at home.
Polished pieces of obsidian appeared, which were common in ancient times in China and Central America, and polished bronze disks, which found distribution in the Mediterranean.
A completely new type of mirror - concave - appeared only in 1240, when they learned to blow glass vessels. The master blew a large ball, then poured molten tin into the tube (another method of joining metal with glass had not yet been invented), and when the tin spread in an even layer over the inner surface and cooled, the ball was broken into pieces. And please: you can look as much as you like, but the reflection was, to put it mildly, a little distorted.
Finally, around 1500, in France they came up with the idea of “wetting” flat glass with mercury and thus gluing thin tin foil to its surface. However, flat glass in those days was incredibly expensive, and only Venice knew how to make it well. Venetian merchants, without thinking twice, obtained a patent from the Flemings and for a full century and a half held a monopoly on the production of excellent “Venetian” mirrors (which should have been called Flemish). Their price can be imagined using this example: a mirror measuring 1.2 meters by 80 centimeters cost... two and a half times more expensive than a painting by Raphael!
For a long time, a mirror has been considered a magical object, full of secrets and magic (and even evil spirits). It faithfully served and still serves the pagan cults of many nations, who see in it the cosmic power of the Sun.
Even the ancient Egyptians interpreted a cross turning into a circle as an erotic vital key. And many centuries later, during the European Renaissance, this symbol was seen as an image of a ladies’ dressing mirror with a handle, in which the goddess of love, Venus, loved to look at herself.
The modern history of mirrors dates back to the 13th century, when their handicraft technology was mastered in Holland. It was followed by Flanders and the German city of craftsmen Nuremberg, where the first mirror workshop, bath mirrors and sinks arose in 1373.
In the 15th century, the island of Murano, located near Venice, in a sea lagoon, became the center of glassmaking. The specially created “Council of Ten” jealously guarded the secrets of glassmaking, encouraging the craftsmen in every possible way, at the same time isolating them from the outside world: the profits from the monopoly were too great to lose it. Glassmakers were moved to the island of Murano under the pretext of protecting Venice from fires. At the beginning of the 16th century, the Andrea Domenico brothers from Murano cut a still hot cylinder of glass lengthwise and rolled out its halves on a copper tabletop. The result was a sheet of mirror cloth, distinguished by its brilliance, crystal transparency and purity. This is how the main event in the history of mirror production took place.
European monarchs tried to find out the mirror secrets of Venice by any means necessary. This was achieved in the 17th century by the minister of Louis XIV, Colbert. With gold and promises, he seduced three craftsmen from Murano and took them to France.
The French turned out to be capable students and soon even surpassed their teachers. Mirror glass began to be produced not by blowing, as was done in Murano, but by casting. The technology is as follows: molten glass directly from the melting pot is poured onto a flat surface and rolled out with a roller. The author of this method is called Luca De Nega.
The invention could not have come at a better time: the Gallery of Mirrors was being built at Versailles. It was 73 meters long and needed large mirrors. In Saint-Gabin, 306 such mirrors were made in order to stun with their radiance those who were lucky enough to visit the king in Versailles. After this, how was it possible not to recognize Louis XIV’s right to be called the “Sun King”?
In Rus', almost until the end of the 17th century, a mirror was considered an overseas sin. Pious people avoided him. The Church Council of 1666 prohibited clergy from keeping mirrors in their homes.
“Only mirrors in a small format were brought from abroad in large quantities and were part of the women’s toilet, the mirror room - domestic toilets,” wrote N.I. Kostomarov. And the historian Zabelin explains that in Russia “mirrors acquired the importance of room furniture almost from the second half of the 17th century, but even at that time they constituted the decoration of only the interior bed rooms and did not yet have a place in the front reception rooms -” We add that and there they were hidden with curtains of taffeta and silk, or kept in icon cases. Under Peter the Great, in Moscow, on the Sparrow Hills, a “stone barn, eighty-three feet long, nine arshins in height, was erected, with a smelting furnace made of white clay brick.” The time has come for Russia to make its own mirrors.
Having become an important element of furniture and decor, the mirror required an appropriate frame. In the mirror frames, artistic taste, the peculiarity of the talent of jewelers and artists, national color, craftsmanship and, of course, time, which is subject to both crafts and art, the monolith - the construction of cottages, were expressed.
At the end of the 16th century, succumbing to fashion, the French queen Marie de' Medici decided to acquire a mirror cabinet, for which 119 mirrors were purchased in Venice. Apparently, in gratitude for the large order, the Venetian craftsmen presented the queen with a unique mirror, decorated with agates, onyxes, emeralds and inlaid with precious stones. Today it is kept in the Louvre.
Mirrors were extremely expensive. Only very rich aristocrats and royalty could buy and collect them.
A not so large mirror measuring 100x65 cm cost more than 8,000 livres, and a Raphael painting of the same size cost about 3,000 livres.
In France, a certain Countess de Fiesque parted with her estate to buy a mirror she liked, and the Duchess de Lude sold silver furniture for melting down, renting an apartment - renting out an apartment to buy a mirror one.
The mirror in the icon case, decorated with thin tin lace, was once given by Princess Sophia (ruler under the boy kings Ivan and Peter) to her dear friend Prince Golitsyn.
In 1689, on the occasion of the disgrace of the prince and his son Alexei, 76 mirrors were transferred to the treasury (mirror passions were already raging among the Russian nobility), but the prince hid the mirror of the princess and took it with him into exile in the Arkhangelsk region. After his death, the mirror, among other things, according to the prince’s will, ended up in a monastery near Pinega, survived and has survived to this day. Now it is kept in the collections of the Arkhangelsk Museum of Local Lore.
John Peckham described a method of coating glass with a thin layer of tin.
The production of the mirror looked like this. The master poured molten tin into the vessel through a tube, which spread in an even layer over the surface of the glass, and when the ball cooled down, it was broken into pieces. The first mirror was imperfect: concave fragments slightly distorted the image, but it became bright and clear.
Application
Use in everyday life
The first mirrors were created in order to monitor one's own appearance [ ] .
Nowadays, mirrors, especially large ones, are widely used in interior design to create the illusion of space, large volume in small spaces. This tradition arose back in the Middle Ages, as soon as the technical ability to create large mirrors, not as ruinously expensive as the Venetian ones, appeared in France. Since that time, not a single wardrobe can do without mirrors [ ] .
Mirrors as reflectors
Applications in scientific instruments
Flat, concave and convex spherical, parabolic, hyperbolic and elliptical mirrors are used as optical instruments.
Mirrors are widely used in optical instruments - spectrophotometers, spectrometers in other optical instruments:
Safety devices, car and road mirrors
In cases where a person's view is limited for some reason, mirrors are especially useful. So, in every car and road bicycles there is one or several mirrors, sometimes slightly convex - to expand the field of vision.
On roads and in tight parking lots, stationary convex mirrors help avoid collisions and accidents.
In video surveillance systems, mirrors provide visibility in more directions from one video camera.
Translucent mirrors
Translucent mirrors are sometimes called "mirror glass" or "one-way glass." Such glasses are used for covert surveillance of people (for the purpose of monitoring behavior or espionage), while the spy is in a dark room, and the object of observation is in a lit room. The principle of operation of mirror glass is that a dim spy is not visible against the background of a bright reflection.
Application in military affairs
In medieval texts, a mirror is an image, a symbol of another world. The mirror is a symbol of eternity, since it contains everything that has passed, everything that is now, everything that is to come.
The literary device “through the looking glass” is widely used by book authors. Lewis Carroll's duology - "Alice in Wonderland" and "Alice through the Looking Glass" - became the most famous. A similar technique was used by Gaston Leroux: in the book “The Phantom of the Opera” Christina enters the underground dwelling of the Phantom through a mirror. Through the mirror in Kingdom of Crooked Mirrors Olya, the heroine of the story-fairy tale of the same name by Vitaly Gubarev and based on it, ends up
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