Openwork Belt Fitting

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Openwork plaques were hung from a belt by a strap. Such useful objects as combs, keys, or amulets would then be suspended from the plaque by chains or strings. The patterns on these belt fittings ranged from architectural motifs to human figures to abstract designs.

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Museum's collection of medieval and Byzantine art is among the most comprehensive in the world. Displayed in both The Met Fifth Avenue and in the Museum's branch in northern Manhattan, The Met Cloisters, the collection encompasses the art of the Mediterranean and Europe from the fall of Rome in the fourth century to the beginning of the Renaissance in the early sixteenth century. It also includes pre-medieval European works of art created during the Bronze Age and early Iron Age.

Metropolitan Museum of Art