Belt buckle. Late-Ottoman, Chaldean Christians, 1850-1900. Victoria & Albert Museum.

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Belt buckle. Late-Ottoman, Chaldean Christians, 1850-1900. Victoria & Albert Museum.

Posted by Jean-Marie Criel on March 29, 2016 at 10:56pm

Belt buckle. Late-Ottoman, 2nd half of 19th century. There is also a third - square - central part (shown in the comments). This type of belts was originally worn by Chaldaen Christians, whose homeland lies in northern Iraq, northeast Syria, northwest Iran and southeast Turkey. Around the turn of the century they were also produced in Deir ez-Zor for the Bedouins of eastern Syria.This particular piece was purchased in Egypt. Copper double plated with silver and then gold. With filigree bosses, set with red, blue, green & yellow pastes. (© V&A, London).

Comments

Lynn Ardent April 2, 2016 at 6:19pm

Dear Jean-Marie, this is a very beautiful buckle, thank you for posting it. I suspect that it is Syrian or Anatolian based on the flower shaped dangles which are characteristic for Syrian ornaments in particular. (my apologies in an earlier version of this comment I called you Jean-Pierre!!)
Jean-Marie Criel April 2, 2016 at 10:38pm

Dear Lynn, thanks for the information concerning the dangles. Regarding the place of the purchase mentioned by the museum (Egypt), and the Caucasian looks of the buckle, I suspect that the object travelled a long way, and that the dangles were added 'on the road', in replacement of lost (or absent) original ones. Furthermore, the buckle and the dangles don't give me a feeling of unity, as if they don't belong together. I wonder if you can agree...?

PS: about Jean-Pierre vs Jean-Marie - no big deal. As a famous Englishman once said: "What's in a name...?").
Lynn Ardent April 3, 2016 at 12:39am

Dear Jean-Marie, I agree the elements look disparate but this piece kept nagging at me and I looked in Kalter's "The Arts and Crafts of Syria" and found this buckle whose left and right elements resemble the V&A's. The caption is, "This type was originally worn by Chaldaen Christian immigrants from Iraq. Around the turn of the century it was produced in Deir ez-Zor for the Bedouins of eastern Syria."

There is a subset of Syrian and Iraqi jewelry which has this effect on me -- they look like a glorious mishmash but were made that way. Peter Hoesli has several examples that show this effect.
Jean-Marie Criel April 3, 2016 at 2:05am

Dear Lynn. Thank you so much for investigation this buckle so thoroughly, and for solving the problem too. I searched the V&A site for the central piece (found it, and post it here), and I reassembled the buckle (digitally, with an odd result as to the perspectives...). I think the result is 100% conclusive, and I changed the caption accordingly. With kind regards, JM.
Betty April 5, 2016 at 5:45pm

Great detective work! And an interesting buckle....

Photos

Belt buckle. Late-Ottoman, Chaldean Christians, 1850-1900. Victoria & Albert Museum.

Comments

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