Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art

About this Work

The plain loop with the little decorated tongue is hinged to the beltplate, fastened with a bronze pin. The beltplate bears a rich repoussé decoration, subdivided into four parts: the connection at the hinge with a tendril pattern, centering around an anchor-like design; the two pointed leaves with their sharp tips turning outward, set into a border of thick, raised reel pattern, which also separates the two forms between them; and the major portion, with the continuous ribbed pattern framing a pointed leaf shape, directed toward the loop. A sequence of nine large half-sphere borders the sunken center; in the inscribed pointed heart at the center a five-leafed palmette appears. This latter design corresponds to the punched stylized tree pattern on the top side of the tongue. The sides of the buckles have been bent down and are prepared to be fastened onto the belt.