Pair of Stirrups

Although close in form to the well-known style of Mongolian, Chinese, and Tibetan stirrups still in use in the region today, this pair, with its slender proportions and accomplished decoration, is earlier and finer than most examples of this type. The dragon heads are chiseled in high relief with deep undercutting and some piercing. The treads, where the rider's feet would rest, are decorated with the interlocked design known as the King's Earrings, damascened in silver.

Credit: Purchase, Rogers Fund and Bequest of Stephen V. Grancsay, by exchange, 1997