Title
Belt
Year/Period
Late 19th or early 20th century
Region
Straits Settlements
Material
Dimension
Object size: 4 x 105.5 x 1 cm
Accession No.
2013-00519
Collection of
This gold belt is decorated with individuals elements joined together. Each element has a flower fixed onto the surface of the belt in a technique called appliqué. The buckle is decorated with a pair of phoenixes and a peony flower, symbols in Chinese art for feminine beauty. This is done through a technique called repousse, in which the metal is hammered from behind to create designs. The marks behind the buckle are 盛豊(sheng feng),万记 (wan ji) 足金(zu jin). The first four characters are the name of the shop and the last two, 足金(zu jin), indicates a high gold content. This indicates that the belt was most likely worn by a Peranakan woman for ceremonial occasions.
