These two belt buckles are decorated with a motif of two horses heads shows back to back. The design is produced using a repousse technique and filled with iron. The heavily corroded hook of one of the buckles is still visible on one buckle, while the other shows only a perforation where the hook may have been. A related gold belt buckle has been found in the Rostov region of east of the Asov Sea. The rounded shape is also similar to that found on openwork belt buckles decorated with animal head motifs found at Daodunzi in Xingxia province. The horse head motif resemble those found on a harness ornament from the Minusink region dated 5-3 century BC and a Scythian antelope attachment dated to the 6th century BC from Dnieper river region.
TD Collection, New York, acquired 1980s-1990s.
Published: T. Pang, Treasures of the Eurasian Steppes: Animal Art from 800 BC to 200 AD (New York, 1998), no. 53.