The Old Warden Mirror

Date: Iron Age. 50 BCE-50 CE

 BEDFM 11720

One of my favourite items in the Settlement Gallery at The Higgins Bedford is an Iron Age mirror discovered at Old Warden in the 1850’s by workmen digging a railway tunnel. The mirror is made of bronze and has a very elaborate swirling design on the non-reflective side created by skillfully etching the design into the surface. In the Iron Age, metal mirrors were rare personal objects and would probably have been treasured items belonging to wealthy individuals, they may even have been passed down as heirlooms.

The mirror has recently returned from loan to a prestigious exhibition in Zurich. The highly acclaimed Museum Rietberg Zurich recently borrowed the Old Warden mirror for their 2019 summer exhibition: “Mirrors-the Reflected Self”. In the beginning when the mirror was away on loan it felt very strange to think that our mirror was on display in another museum, but as I became more comfortable with the situation, I began to feel pleased that the mirror was contributing to something big and different.  Since the mirror’s return, I often stop by the case to admire it; it is like seeing an old friend.

Written by Liz Pieksma, Keeper of Archaeology