136 - A PAIR OF MEROVINGIAN BRONZE BELT PLAQUES, CIRCA 650-700 AD

A PAIR OF MEROVINGIAN BRONZE BELT PLAQUES, CIRCA 650-700 AD Southwestern Gaul (present-day Aquitaine, France). Each skillfully cast, of rectangular form with rounded corners, one fitted with nine hemispherical bosses on applied conical bases and the other with ten, arranged in a regular pattern and surrounded by finely incised decoration of concentric circles, arcs, and linear registers. (2) Provenance: Bruno Cooper Works of Art, Norwich, United Kingdom, 2004. Collection of Paolo Bertuzzi, acquired from the above. A copy of the signed invoice from Bruno Cooper, dated 2 November 2004, addressed to Paolo Bertuzzi, confirming the dating and attribution above, and stating a purchase price for the present lot of GBP 4,300 or approx. EUR 9,300 (converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing), accompanies this lot. Paolo Bertuzzi (1943-2022) was a fashion stylist from Bologna. He was the son of Enrichetta Bertuzzi, founder of Hettabretz, a noted Italian fashion company with customers such as the Rothschild family, Audrey Hepburn, and Elizabeth Taylor. Paolo Bertuzzi later took over his mother’s business and designed exclusive pieces, some of which were exhibited in the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, USA. He was also an avid collector of antiques for more than sixty years. His collection includes both archaic and contemporary art, and he edited two important books about Asian art, Goa Made - An Archaeological Discovery, about a large-scale archaeological project carried out with the Italian and Indonesian governments, and Majapahit, Masterpieces from a Forgotten Kingdom. Condition: Good condition with expected wear, casting irregularities, traces of weathering, areas of deep corrosion, signs of prolonged burial, obvious losses, light warping, and small dents. The bronze with a rich, naturally grown patina with vibrant malachite encrustations. Weight: 226.6 g (total) Dimensions: Length 12.7 - 14.3 cm The Aquitanian tradition constitutes one of the most distinctive regional groups of dress metalwork from Merovingian Gaul, with a particularly strong concentration in the southwest and areas bordering the Pyrenees. During the sixth and seventh centuries, Aquitaine developed a highly characteristic regional production of large copper-alloy belt plaques, frequently rectangular or trapezoidal and occasionally tinned, decorated with multiple hemispherical bosses, incised concentric circles, and geometric motifs. The belt became an important means of personal display, expressing rank, wealth and social identity within this tradition. Large Aquitanian plaques, prominently displayed on the clothing and requiring considerable quantities of metal and specialized workmanship, transformed the belt into a particularly conspicuous element of dress. In addition to securing garments, such fittings could support small personal objects, pouches or implements. Their frequent occurrence in funerary contexts further demonstrates their significance in articulating the social identity of the deceased. Literature comparison: Compare a related copper alloy belt plate with nine bosses, France, Occitanie, dated to the 7th century, 13 cm long, in the Musée d’Archéologie de Toulouse, inventory number 24008 A.