Tab
Unknown Artist
600s
Medium
iron with silver overlay
Dimensions
9.1 × 5.8 cm
Classification
Jewelry
Department
Medieval Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of the John Huntington Art and Polytechnic Trust
Accession Number
1919.1009.b
About this artwork
This tab would have been attached to a strip of leather worn around the waist. It was likely both an ornamental statement indicating social rank and a practical accessory. The decorative inlay was applied by forcing silver wire into a pattern engraved into the iron. The condition of the tab indicates that it was likely excavated, perhaps from a grave.