Belt Buckle and Tab

600s

Belt Buckle and Tab, 600s. Frankish, Migration period, 7th century. Iron with silver overlay; overall: 10.2 x 5.9 cm (4 x 2 5/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of the John Huntington Art and Polytechnic Trust 1919.1009 This buckle would have been attached to a strip of leather worn around the waist. It was likely both an ornamental statement indicating social rank and a practical accessory. The decorative inlay was applied by forcing silver wire into a pattern engraved into the iron. The condition of the buckle indicates that it was likely excavated, perhaps from a grave.