Kunst & Kunsthandwerk, Antiken

| 197 1850 plaques in the shape of a St. Andrew’s Cross on the inside. The inlay of the centre setting has been lost. All fittings bearing remnants of blue glass paste. Small cylindrical tubes of sheet sil­ ver in the corners, in which silver pins are insert­ ed, with small, square matching fittings for attachment to the belt. Length of each approx. 2.5 cm, height of the metal boxes approx. 5 mm, not including the silver pins. The tongue piece similarly patterned, rounded on one side. No matching fittings for the four pins underneath; these have been hammered flat directly on the base plate. A strap holder with four silver pins on the top, connecting the end of the belt to the tongue piece. Length 4.3 cm. Height 6 mm. A Mediterranean ‘coloured style’ belt set from late antiquity, rarely found in such complete condition with so many inlays. P rovenance : Private Austrian collection, acquired from the stock of an Austrian art dealer during the 1990s. 245694 II - € 2.000 1851 Zwei Ortbänder eines Messer­ bestecks, merowingisch, spätes 6. Jhdt. Zwei goldene zungenförmige Ortbänder eines merowingischen Bestecks, bestehend aus ei- nem Paar Messer. Gefertigt aus Goldblech. Schauseitig aufwändig mit Goldbändern ver- ziert. Jeweils mit zwei erhaltenen Goldnieten. Intakt. Gesamtgewicht 12,5 g. Länge jeweils 2,1 cm. Zum Gebrauch zweier Messer in merowin- gisch-fränkischer Zeit Vgl. J. Werner, Das Messerpaar aus Basel-Kleinhüningen, Grab 126. Zu alemannisch-fränkischen Essbeste- cken. Provincialia, Festschrift für R. Laur- Belart (1968), S. 647 ff. Provenienz: Aus einer in Süddeutschland aufbewahrten Privatsammlung. Erworben in den 1970er bis 1980er Jahren im Kunsthandel und aus deutschen Privatsammlungen. Two Ortband chapes of a Merovingian knife set, late 6th century Two golden tongue-shaped chapes of a Mero­ vingian cutlery, consisting of a pair of knives. Made of gold sheet. Length 2.1 cm each. Weight 12.5 g. P rovenance : From a private collection kept in southern Germany. Acquired from art deal­ ers and German private collectors in the 1970s and 1980s. 251610 II € 700