Vytautas Belt

One of the most valuable museum items in Belarus – the belt of the era of Vytautas the Great, the most famous ruler of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was discovered as part of a treasure near the village of Lithuania in the Molodechno district in the early 1990s. For a long time it was in private hands, there was also a threat of exporting the rarity abroad. But the ceremonial belt of the Vytautas era was transferred to the state, became a national treasure. This decoration-a work of applied art of the late XIV – first third of the XV centuries-is included in the State List of Historical and cultural Values of the Republic of Belarus of the first category. The unique set, presumably created in the Crimean Khanate, consists of 11 silver round plates decorated with floral ornaments, images of birds and basilisks, belt buckles are decorated with tips. The most valuable exhibit is located in the National Historical Museum of Belarus.