The
second object of obvious importance at Ise is said to be a mirror, wrapped
in cloth and lying in a wooden box; by some accounts, it is considered
to be the sun goddess herself. It has never been photographed, of course,
but probably resembles this ancient bronze mirror, decorated on one side
and polished on the other. The symbolic power of the mirror stems not only
from its key role in the story of luring the sun goddess from the cave,
but also from its reflective quality that makes it a metaphor for the basic
Shinto concepts of brightness and purity. The mirror enshrined at Ise also
has political meaning as one of the three symbolic regalia, together with
a sword and a curved jewel, of the Japanese imperial family.