Zur Herrschersymbolik von Löwenreliefs auf GÜrtelbeschlägen des Späten 9. Und 10. Jahrhunderts

Abstract

Reliefs of lions as symbols of rulership on belt fittings of the late 9 th and 10 th centuries . In the second half of the 9 th and in the 10 th century metal fittings on men’s belts were for the first time ornamented with reliefs of individual lions which were not only of apotropaic significance, but were obviously symbols of rulership. The majestically striding lion of the Emperor in Byzantium which we know from the imperial purple silks of the Macedonian dynasty (867–1057) for example also adorned the bronze buckles of numerous Byzantine military belts. These were probably primarily worn by soldiers of the imperial guard, the so-called “lions”.The charging lion on the guilded silver fittings of a belt garniture of the 10 th century from Azerbaijan, however, was the emblematic animal of a local ruler for whom the splendid belt had served as insignia.In the second half of the 9 th century Carolingians ornamented their belts with an imperial lion, too, as the guilded silver fittings from Loon in the provi...