ITEM: Sheet decoration, possibly a belt fitting, with repoussé technic. Depicts a procession of warriors carrying spears and shields accompanied by charioteers MATERIAL: Bronze CULTURE: Etruscan PERIOD: 7th – 5th Century B.C DIMENSIONS: 72 mm x 272 mm (without stand) CONDITION: Good condition. Includes stand PROVENANCE: Ex Dutch private collection, J.T., collected before 1980s BIBLIOGRAPHY: THE BRITISH MUSEUM Collection, accession number 1850,0227.15.b Bronze belts are quite common in aristocratic tombs, especially in female and child burials. The lozenge-shaped belt is associated with the female sphere of life and the matrimonial status of women (Iaia 1999:62). However, the presence of these belts in child burials indicates that they are not only a symbol for married women. Satyr and Silenus, in Greek mythology, creatures of the wild, part man and part beast, who in Classical times were closely associated with the god Dionysus. Their Italian counterparts were the Fauns (see Faunus). Satyrs and Sileni were at first represented as uncouth men, each with a horse’s tail and ears and an erect phallus. In the Hellenistic age they were represented as men having a goat’s legs and tail. The occurrence of two different names for the creatures has been explained by two rival theories: that Silenus was the Asian Greek and Satyr the mainland name for the same mythical being; or that the Sileni were part horse and the Satyrs part goat. Neither theory, however, fits all the examples in early art and literature. Comes with Certificate of Authenticity and Export license If you bid outside the European Union and win the item, we will have to apply for an export licence for your country and shipping will take 3 to 5 weeks.