The Han Dynasty marked the golden age of ancient Chinese bronze mirror craftsmanship. Mirrors were predominantly cast from a ternary alloy of lead, tin and copper with a classic ratio roughly 14:5:1. Lead improves the fluidity of molten alloy, enabling sharply defined decorative patterns, stable forming and mass production — a remarkable achievement of Han metallurgical technology.

After thousands of years underground, these bronze mirrors develop porosity, segregation and corrosion layers. These unique microstructures create major challenges for metallographic sample preparation of cultural relics.

Key challenges of Han bronze mirror metallography: Uneven hardness across the specimen; lead phases prone to shedding. Grinding easily causes scratches and surface deformation. Loosely bonded corrosion layers tend to peel off during polishing, creating false features that distort observations of the original casting microstructure.

Truly has developed a complete workflow to solve these difficulties:

✅ Table-CUT200 automatic precision cutting minimizes thermal damage

✅ Sequential grinding with graded abrasive papers (paraffin can be applied as needed)

✅ ThetaVAC-2 vacuum impregnation fills irregular pores to achieve superior metallographic imaging

✅ Diamond polishing suspension followed by silica final polishing removes fine scratches and surface deformation

✅ Ultrasonic cleaning for porous areas

This workflow preserves intact original microstructures, accurately revealing casting techniques of Han bronze mirrors and delivering reliable data for cultural heritage research.

Recommended Preparation Parameters

1️⃣ Grinding: MET-SP P800–2500

2️⃣ Rough polishing: SC + 0.05μm Super

3️⃣ Final polishing: ZN + 0.05μm 439

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