ProverbWisdomEnglish origin1640

The best mirror is an old friend

Meaning: True friends who have known us for a long time see us most clearly and honestly.

Origin: From George Herbert's Outlandish Proverbs (1640), a collection of foreign sayings gathered by the English poet and priest, later reissued as Jacula Prudentum. An old friend, it says, shows you yourself more truthfully than glass does — flaws included.

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