Belt Buckle

Description Buckles with openwork plates depicting griffins drinking from fountains have been found in many parts of France and Switzerland. The griffin, a mythical creature that is half eagle, half lion, originated in Assyria and symbolized vigilance and ferocity. They were a popular design motif throughout Europe during the Migration period. With the advent of Christianity, the griffin drinking from a cup came to symbolize the soul refreshing itself at the source of everlasting life.

Conservation

Date	Description	Narrative
4/19/1984	Treatment	cleaned

Exhibitions

• Jewelry - Ancient to Modern. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. 1979-1980.
• Objects of Adornment: Five Thousand Years of Jewelry from the Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, New York; Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk; Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh; San Antonio Museum of Art, San Antonio; Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa; Honolulu Academy of Arts, Honolulu; New Orleans Museum of Art, New Orleans; Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee; Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis; Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo; The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota. 1984-1987.
• Jewelry from the Walters Art Gallery and the Zucker Family Collection. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. 1987.

Provenance Victor Gay, Paris, by purchase; Sale, Hôtel Drouot, Paris, March 23, 1909, no. 281; Joseph Brummer, New York [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Sale, Parke-Bernet Galleries, New York, May 12, 1949, no. 278; Walters Art Museum, 1949, by purchase.

Credit Museum purchase, 1949