Greece, Geometric period / c. 725–675 BCE
Woman's Belt Hanger (Zone)
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs Woman's Belt Hanger (Zone) as metalwork (Greece, Geometric period · c. 725–675 BCE).
Ancient bronze objects often have a greenish hue due to a chemical reaction that creates this surface patina.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this metalwork as bronze.
The museum's collection notes: The shape and punched and incised decoration of this northern Greek triangular-shaped zone (woman’s belt hanger) may symbolize a woman’s procreative anatomy, with groups of small circles flanking a large central radiating circle. An ornament of this type was found in a woman’s grave positioned directly over the pelvic bone, and could have been worn suspended from or attached to a belt made of less durable materials.
FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE
The Cleveland Museum of ArtWoman's Belt Hanger (Zone)Original explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.