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Belt

ca. 1330–50
On view at The Met Cloisters in Gallery 02
The celebrated Italian poet Giovanni Boccaccio (1313–1375) tells of a silver belt stolen from a virtuous Genoese woman that was offered for sale in the market at Acre, a principal arrival point for European Christian pilgrims. The story bears witness to the lucrative and lively commerce between Italian merchant cities and the Holy Land. This belt, which combines typically European motifs like that of a woman spinning with images of men in Persian inspired costumes, boasts of the same wide world that Boccaccio took for granted.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Belt
  • Date: ca. 1330–50
  • Geography: Made in possibly Genoa, Italy
  • Culture: North Italian
  • Medium: Silver, with traces of gilding and enamel; modern textile support
  • Dimensions: 65 3/8 × 1 5/16 × 9/16 in. (166 × 3.3 × 1.4 cm)
    Other (waist size): 21 1/16 - 33 7/16 in. (53.5 - 85 cm)
    Other (width of textile support): 7/8 in. (2.3 cm)
    Other (From end of belt buckle to change in orientation): 34 1/16 in. (86.5 cm)
    Other (From end of belt strap to change in orientation): 40 3/16 in. (102 cm)
  • Classifications: Metalwork-Silver, Textiles-Woven
  • Credit Line: The Cloisters Collection, 2015
  • Object Number: 2015.705a, b
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters

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