A unique Sogdian bronze pin and a fragment of a Chinese “Zhenzifeishuang” 真子飞霜 mirror from Sanjar-Shah (Tajikistan)

The article presents two special finds uncovered at the site of Sanjar-Shah during the 2016 archeological season—a bronze pin with a unique finial of two Janus-like faces, and a fragment of a Chinese mirror. The bronze pin has no parallels among Sogdian objects but is strikingly similar to a group of so-called “mace-heads” that originate in Sasanian Iran. We suggest that the design of the Sanjar-Shah pin is inspired by these objects, all of them being modelled on real maces attested in Sogdian paintings. The surviving fragment of the mirror allows us to establish that it belongs to a well-known type of mirror from the Tang period, the “Zhenzifeishuang” mirror. This is the first time that a mirror of this type has been found outside of China.