Visitors are advised that the Mirror of the Moon Mantis is not intended for direct observation.

Those expecting to see their own reflection are often disappointed.

Staff instead recommend placing a nearby object within the mirror's field and observing only its reflected image.

Please avoid prolonged viewing. If the reflected object appears to change independently of its physical counterpart, discontinue observation and step away from the exhibit.

The polished disc before you predates every reliable record of its existence. Its frame is cast from an unidentified silver-black alloy. The surface is engraved with praying mantids, crescent moons, and branching vines. An inscription runs around the reverse edge. No surviving scholar has translated it in full.

The mirror rarely produces a reliable reflection of the observer. Bell family records suggest it reveals relationships instead.

Early Cloak manuscripts describe the artifact as an instrument for examining entanglements rather than appearances. They propose that every object exists at the meeting point of countless invisible causes extending through history. The Mirror reveals only a small portion of those connections.

Visitors have reported seeing hair-thin filaments of pale light. Others describe distant landscapes, objects appearing both ancient and newly made, or unfamiliar figures standing just beyond the reflected scene. Bell records suggest these effects become more elaborate with continued observation.

The family offers no formal explanation.

Several custodians experienced lasting psychological effects after extended study. The most frequently reported include difficulty separating symbols from ordinary objects, heightened awareness of recurring patterns, the persistent feeling of quiet company, and an inability to experience coincidence without suspicion.

A Bell ledger from 1937 contains a brief note: "After the sixth evening he ceased describing the Mirror. He described only everything else."

Of greater concern are reports involving what researchers later termed Predatory Reflections.

Under poorly understood conditions, reflected figures occasionally continue moving after their physical counterparts have become still. Every documented observation began in peripheral vision. No witness has successfully looked directly at such a figure before it disappeared.

Bell family policy requires the immediate closure of the gallery following any credible report of this phenomenon.

The policy has been enacted four times.

Photography has produced inconsistent results. Most images show only polished black glass. Others reveal rooms unlike the gallery itself. A small number contain unidentified individuals. No two such photographs have ever matched.

Researchers remain divided over the Mirror's original purpose. Some regard it as a divinatory instrument. Others believe it served as a means of navigating the architecture of causality itself.

Guests are reminded:

• Do not search for your own reflection.
• Do not compare observations while standing before the glass.
• Do not remain after closing if whispering appears to originate from within the frame.
• Under no circumstances attempt to identify anyone standing behind you in the reflection.

Visitors who later notice recurring people, phrases, insects, symbols, or numbers are encouraged to resist assigning immediate significance.

The Bell family suggests the Mirror has already done so.