Item number: X68

Year: 6th – 9th C. AD

Material: Bronze

Size: 40 x 29.8 x 5.9 mm

Weight: 8.33 g

Provenance: Stephen Album Rare Coins 2026

This is a bronze ornament from Transoxiana, possibly utilized as a tail ornament for a plaque-belt.

A human head, seemingly wearing a diadem or crown, features on the upper part of the ornament; its high cheekbones and a brow ridge that continuously connects to the bridge of the nose reflect a style frequently observed locally since the Hellenistic period. Below it lies a horizontal oval, whose edge contains a groove enclosing a border of pearls—a Sasanian-Byzantine style motif that gradually became popular among the Sogdians of Transoxiana after the fifth century AD. A long stem extends from below the collar of the head, traversing the oval. The reverse side features two thin, short cylinders, which must have served as fastening studs. The profile is trapezoidal, meaning the edges form beveled margins.

The overall design likely imitates a buckle situated at the head position of a plaque-belt. The circular portion was intended for the excess belt to pass through, while the central needle-like component depicts the moveable tongue used to secure the leather strap within the buckle. Based on its beveled margins, the object itself was probably a component of a plaque-belt. Regarding its function and position, it may have been situated precisely opposite the buckle, fastened at the tail end as a decoration to achieve a symmetrical effect.

For the nomadic peoples and oasis cities of Central Asia, the plaque-belt was the most indispensable equipment for a warrior. Each warrior was equipped with an upper belt for suspending a sword and a dagger, and a lower belt for suspending a bowcase and a quiver. The classic components of a plaque-belt comprise: a buckle at the head, used to adjust the length of the leather strap and secure it to the body; external plaque-mounts on the leather strap, utilized to provide positioning points for suspending equipment and weaponry, or simply as decoration; and a tail ornament at the terminal end, which must have been a purely decorative item. Plaque-belts of similar types were fashionable across an extremely vast territory from the sixth to the ninth centuries AD, with examples occasionally excavated from Japan and China at the eastern end of Eurasia, all the way to the Kingdom of Hungary in Eastern Europe. However, this oval tail ornament is relatively rare, and it must have evolved as a variation from the primary type of rounded tail ornaments, or the semi-oval tail ornaments of the fifth and eighth types. The diffusion of the plaque-belt may have benefited from the expansion and transmission of the Turks, and its period of popularity also aligns with the golden age of the Turks; in Central Asia, plaque-belts of similar types may have remained in use until the twelfth century AD.

The Sogdian city-states were primarily located in Transoxiana (modern southwestern Uzbekistan). During the Tang Dynasty, contemporary Chinese referred to them as the ‘Nine Houses of Zhaowu’ or the ‘Hu of the Nine Surnames’. When traveling within the borders of the Han territories, citizens of these states frequently adopted their country’s name as their surname; a famous example is An Lushan, who adopted the surname from ‘the State of An’. Although named ‘Nine Surnames’, there were not merely nine regimes, nor were they likely composed of a single ethnic group. The origin of the Sogdians can perhaps be traced back to the remnants of the Greater Yuezhi after they were destroyed by the Xiongnu, who gradually integrated with ethnic groups such as the Turks in the region. In the fourth year of the Zhenguan era of Emperor Taizong of Tang (630 AD), the Tang military generals Li Jing and Li Ji defeated and extinguished the Eastern Turkic Khaganate, leading to a steady increase in the Tang court’s influence over the Western Regions. During the Zhenguan era, various city-states began to offer tribute one after another. In the fourth year of the Xianqing era of Emperor Gaozong of Tang (659 AD), the Tang destroyed the Western Turks and established loose rein (jimi) administration over the Zhaowu Nine Surnames, bringing them collectively under the management of the Anxi Grand Protectorate. Leveraging their geographical advantages and commercial convenience, the Sogdians traveled back and forth along the Silk Road, establishing communities in places such as Chang’an and Luoyang, and gradually achieved a certain status within the military and political systems of the Tang Empire.

Taking the State of Shi (modern Tashkent) among the ‘Nine Houses of Zhaowu’ as the northern boundary, the region to the north is Semirechye (modern southeastern Kazakhstan and eastern Kyrgyzstan). Semirechye is a collective term for seven major rivers flowing into Lake Balkhash along with countless tributaries. During the Sui Dynasty, this area was originally under the jurisdiction of the Western Turks. In the first year of the Tiaolu era of Emperor Gaozong of Tang (679 AD), the Tang general Wang Fangyi established the city of Suyab in this region. In the tenth year of the Tianbao era of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang (751 AD), the Tang army was defeated in the Battle of Talas, and its power gradually withdrew from the Semirechye region. The locality was subsequently ruled by the Turgesh Khaganate and the Karluk Khaganate. Historically, the Semirechye region was an important section of the northern route of the Silk Road, through which merchants and citizens could travel to the Levant and other regions, or even onward to Constantinople (modern Istanbul). In the mid-ninth century AD, the Karakhanid Khanate expanded into the region, which gradually underwent Islamisation.

物件編號: X68

年代: 公元 6-9 世紀

材料: 青銅

尺寸: 40 x 29.8 x 5.9 mm

重量: 8.33 g

來源: 史蒂芬稀有錢幣專輯 2026

這是一個青銅飾物，來自河中地區，可能是用作蹀躞帶的尾飾。

飾物的上方有一頭像，似頭戴冠冕，顴骨高聳，眉骨與鼻樑相連，是希臘化時代以來於當地時見的風格。下方為一橫向的橢圓，橢圓邊緣有一圈凹槽，凹槽內有一圈連珠點，是河中地區的粟特人在五世紀後逐漸流行的薩珊-拜占庭式紋飾。頭像的衣領下延伸出一長桿，亙於橢圓上。背面有兩個細短圓柱，應是用於固定的釬釘。側面呈梯形，即邊緣呈斜稜狀。

整體設計可能模仿蹀躞帶帶首位置的帶扣，圓形部分是用以穿過多餘的腰帶，中央的針狀部件則是描繪了帶扣中用以固定皮帶的活動帶舌。而其本身，從斜稜邊緣來看，可能也是蹀躞帶的部件。至於其功用與位置，可能恰好與帶扣相反，是固定在帶尾用作裝飾，以起到對稱的效果。

對於中亞的遊牧民族與綠洲城市而言，蹀躞帶是戰士最不可或缺的裝備。每位戰士都配有懸掛佩劍和匕首的上帶，與懸掛弓袋和箭箙的下帶。蹀躞帶的經典部件有：首部的帶扣，用以調整皮帶長度，並固定於人身上；皮帶上的外貼飾片，用以提供懸掛裝備、武具的定位點，或是單純的裝飾；末端的帶尾則應為純粹的飾品。類似器型的蹀躞帶，於公元六至九世紀風行於極其遼闊的範圍中，從歐亞大陸東端的中國、日本，一直到東歐的匈牙利王國，均時有出土。然而此橢圓尾飾則較罕見，應是由最第一型的圓弧尾飾，或第五型、第八型的半卵圓型尾飾變形而來。蹀躞帶的擴散可能得益於突厥人的擴張及傳播，其風行時段也符合突厥人的興盛期，在中亞，類似器型的蹀躞帶可能一直使用至公元十二世紀。

粟特城邦主要位於河中地區(今烏茲別克西南部)，於唐代時人稱為「昭武九姓」或「九姓胡」，其國人於漢境行走時常以國名為姓，著名者如安祿山，便以｢安國｣為姓。雖名「九姓」，但並非僅有九個政權，也大概並非單一民族組成。粟特人源流可能可以上溯至大月氏被匈奴擊滅後的殘部，於當地逐漸與突厥等民族相融。唐太宗貞觀四年(公元630年)，唐軍將領李靖、李勣攻滅東突厥汗國，唐廷對西域影響力漸增。貞觀年間諸城邦紛紛開始入貢。唐高宗顯慶四年(公元659年)，唐滅西突厥，羈縻昭武九姓，統歸安西大都護府管理。粟特人藉地利與商貿之便，往來於絲綢之路沿線，並於長安、洛陽等地建立社群，並逐漸於唐帝國的軍、政系統中取得一定地位。

以「昭武九姓」中的石國(今塔什干)為北界，北部便是七河地區(今哈薩克東南部與吉爾吉斯東部)。七河為流向巴爾喀什湖的七條主要河流與無數支流的統稱。隋代此地原為西突厥統屬。唐高宗調露元年(公元679年)，唐將王方翼在此地區設碎葉城。唐玄宗天寶十年(公元751年)，唐軍於怛羅斯戰役中戰敗，勢力逐漸退出七河地區。本地先後由突騎施汗國、葛邏祿汗國所領。於歷史上，七河地區為絲路北線的重要路段，商民可途經此地區，前往黎凡特等地，甚或前往君士坦丁堡(今伊斯坦堡)。公元九世紀中，喀喇汗國擴張至該地區，並逐漸伊斯蘭化。