On Tue, 23 Sep 2008 20:22:11 +0200, "Steve Lusardi"
wrote:

Come on guys, this isn't a China thing. We make them that way as well and
have for a very long time.

Who's we? I find this hard to believe.

http://www.jstor.org/pss/1506387
"Mirrors made of glass backed with a reflective coating of tin amalgam
first came into general use in the sixteenth century. Production
ceased around 1900."

On the other hand, I also find it hard to believe Martin's mirror is
mercury coated. In the absence of more evidence, it seems far more
likely the red is a protective coating rather than cinnabar.

--
Ned Simmons