Zur Herrschersymbolik von Löwenreliefs auf GÜrtelbeschlägen des Späten 9. Und 10. Jahrhunderts

Reliefs of lions as symbols of rulership on belt fittings of the late 9 th and 10 th centuries . In the second half of the 9 th and in the 10 th century metal fittings on men’s belts were for the first time ornamented with reliefs of individual lions which were not only of apotropaic significance, but were obviously symbols of rulership. The majestically striding lion of the Emperor in Byzantium which we know from the imperial purple silks of the Macedonian dynasty (867–1057) for example also adorned the bronze buckles of numerous Byzantine military belts. These were probably primarily worn by soldiers of the imperial guard, the so-called “lions”.The charging lion on the guilded silver fittings of a belt garniture of the 10 th century from Azerbaijan, however, was the emblematic animal of a local ruler for whom the splendid belt had served as insignia.In the second half of the 9 th century Carolingians ornamented their belts with an imperial lion, too, as the guilded silver fittings from Loon in the province Drenthe prove. Whether the belt fittings of their successors in the 10 th and 11 th centuries were adorned with this symbol of rulership is unknown due to a lack of finds. This custom only becomes traceable again in the 12 th century when the most distinguished aristocratic families — as for instance the House of Welf — also chose the lion as their heraldic animal

Ancient history · Art · Art history · Bronze · Byzantine architecture · Emperor · Humanities · Iconography · Macedonian · Ruler · Ancient and Medieval Archaeology Studies · Byzantine Studies and History · Eurasian Exchange Networks · History

• An 11th century shipwreck at Serçe Liman, Turkey

  Open Access•George F Bass, Frederick H Van Doorninck•The International Journal of…•1978

  Add to list

• A Seljuq Hoard from Persia

  Basil Gray•The British Museum Quarterly•1939

  Add to list

• Opponensi vélemények Garam Éva „Funde byzantinischer Herkunft in der Awarenzeit vom Ende des 6. bis zum Ende des 7. Jahrhunderts”című MTA doktori értekezéséről

  László Kovács, Ferenc Makk et al.•Archaeologiai Értesítő•2005

  Add to list