This large silver leaf-shaped belt buckle is decorated using the niello technique in which decorative patterns on an object are contrasted against a dark enamel background. Minangkabau jewellery is noted for its elaborate detailing and draws inspiration from Malay, Bugis, Chinese and Acehnese styles and techniques.The Minangkabau were mostly a trading community. Their ancestry is traced back to the legend of the victorious baby buffalo that fought a large bull from Java. They live in and around Padang, the capital and largest city of West Sumatra.
