At the center of the circular plate of this buckle is a tiny face superimposed on a cross. Other instances of this face that appear with inscriptions indicate that it is meant to represent Christ.
Credit: Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
c. 600
Copper alloy, "tinned" surface
6.0 x 9.6cm
17.191.223
Image and text © Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2019
Where you'll find this
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Permanent collection