Belt plate, military belt plate

Buckle plate from a belt, found in the grave of a late Roman man in the eastern cemetery of Roman London (burial number B538). His grave goods (two glass bottles, a brooch and a belt decorated with chip-carved metal plates) indicated that he was a man of high rank, possibly a senior soldier or official in the Roman government. The remains of the belt were found by the man’s left shoulder so it was placed in his grave, rather than being worn.
Decoration: copper-alloy buckle plate has a rectangular panel with a triangular extension, framed by a band of decorative scrollwork composed of tinning and black niello inlay. The band between the rectangle and triangle contains zigzag decoration, also with tinning and niello. Within the panels are zones of geometric chip-carved decoration, based on scroll patterns, which show tool marks. Three squares are linked within the central panel; the middle square contains two sets of three scrolls or wave patterns placed side by side while the outer squares contain opposing scrolls set within a saltire.
On the outside edges are chip-carved zoomorphic designs, with two animals confronting at the apex of the triangle, the detail enhanced with punched dots. Along the long edge is a cylindrical tube, with punched decoration. The plate was attached to a leather backing, traces of which were tentatively identified, by means of five small rivets, one at each corner of the rectangular panel, one at the apex of the triangle.