URARTIAN BRONZE BELT

Ca. 1200-1000 BC
An incredibly rare to find a complete Urartian belt. This example, made from hammered bronze and decorated in low relief/repousse with a central band of five horizontal bands of repeated bands with dots. Each band has a raised border. Around the edges on two sides are a series of tiny perforations. A small ring at one end shows how the belt was clasped around the waist.Bronze belts bearing repeated motifs of gods, hunting scenes, animals, and geometric and floral patterns are one of the most enduring remains of the Urartian Kingdom, which stretched from the Euphrates in the west to Iran in the East. Their military success has been attributed to their chariots and their artwork, like this belt, attests to this. This is fascinating as chariots had only recently been invented, and how they built them and how many they actually built remain mysteries.A similar Urartian bronze belt of a similar size sold for £8,750 at Christie's London, Sale 1561, Antiquities, October 1, 2014 - Lot 146.
Size: L:300mm / W:320mm; 1kg (with frame)
Provenance: Private UK collection; From an old London collection formed in the 1990s.
Estimate: GBP 2000 - 4000