Urartian Armour Belt with Lions. 8th-7th century B.C. A broad hammered bronze cuirass or belt decorated in chased low relief; ornamented with clusters of raised bosses in four horizontal bands; the terminals formed from large rectangular plaques cut from another armour, decorated with foliage ornaments and three lions standing in profile, each panel fitted with a fastening ring; the edges of the belt with regularly disposed holes for fastening to the leather lining; mounted on a custom-made frame. See Esayan, S.A., ‘?????????? VI-V ??. ?? ?. ?. ? ????? ????????? (Burials of the 6th-5th centuries B.C. in the mountains of Shamshadin’ in ?? (Sovietskaya Archeologjia - Archaeology of the Soviet Union), 1965; Esayan, S.A., 'Gürtelbleche der Älteren Eisenzeit in Armenien' in Beiträge zur allgemeinen und vergleichenden Archäologie, vol.6, pp.97-198, pls.8 & 25, nos.25 and 26 (belts from Golovino); Born H., Seidl, U., Schutzwaffen aus Assyrien und Urartu, Sammlung Axel Guttmann IV, Mainz, 1995, AG 230, 231; Gorelik, M.,Weapons of Ancient East, IV millennium BC-IV century BC, Saint Petersburg (2003) in Russian, pl.LXI, nn.88-89-90. 554 grams, 78mm wide (3 1/8 in.) Acquired on the London art market, 1994. Property of a North London gentleman. Accompanied by an archaeological report by Dr Raffaele D'Amato. The belt-cuirass preserves a decoration substantially identical to various complete and fragmentary belts from the collection of Caucasian and Urartian items preserved in the Rezan Has Muzesi of Istanbul. According to Gorelik, by comparison with some armour-belts, especially the ones with the same pattern from Tigranakert (2003, pl.LIX, no.8) the employment of such belts lasted at least until the 7th century BC. Protective belts in the Caucasus were very popular, especially among Urartians. The early examples of such armoured belts appeared in Middle East, at the beginning of the first millennium BC, introducing an original fixing system on the waist, instead of the simple ties: a hook was first sewn separately to one end of the belt, and later became part of a massive bronze buckle furnished with a rectangular ring. [A video of this lot is available to view on Timeline Auctions Website]

Fair condition, repaired.