Скрын відэа
A complete Slutsk belt measuring 4 metres and 60 centimetres in length, acquired from a private individual, has appeared in the collection of the National Art Museum. A report on Belarusian television hinted that the price of the belt amounted to a five-figure sum.
The piece has survived in its entirety, remains in good condition, and contains many gold threads. The fringes at the ends of the belt have also been preserved, which is extremely rare. For example, a complete 18th-century belt kept at the National Museum no longer has its original fringes.
The belt, produced around 1807, is described by museum researchers as one of the finest examples of its time. At that time, the Slutsk manufactory belonged to Karol Stanisław Radziwiłł, whose mark has been preserved on the belt.
Belts woven from fine silk, gold, and silver threads were an indispensable attribute of the wealthy Belarusian nobility. Initially they were imported, mainly from Asia, but very quickly local production began on the territory of the Grand Duchy. These belts became a distinctive jewel of the high craftsmanship of Belarusian weavers and a source of pride for Belarusian decorative and applied arts. The most famous in Belarus were the products of the Slutsk manufactory.
The Slutsk silk belt manufactory was founded in 1760 by Prince Michał Kazimierz Radziwiłł. To train local weavers, a Turkish craftsman of Armenian origin, Jan Madżarski, was invited to the Slutsk factory.
Production continued for about half a century, during which time the belts became a true legend.
It is believed that no more than 1,000 Slutsk belts have survived in total, with only slightly more than a dozen held in seven Belarusian museums. The collection of the former State Art Gallery, consisting of 48 belts (32 of them from the Radziwiłł collection in Niasvizh), was taken to Germany during World War II, while the collection of the Belarusian State Museum, which included 21 belts, was also lost.
The new exhibit will for now remain in storage.
Subscribe to Reform.news cultural news on Telegram