The belt hook is a device for

fastening A fastener (US English) or fastening (UK English) is a hardware device that mechanically joins or affixes two or more objects together. In general, fasteners are used to create non-permanent joints; that is, joints that can be removed or disman ...

that predates the

belt buckle A belt buckle is a buckle, a clasp for fastening two ends, such as of straps or a belt (clothing), belt, in which a device attached to one of the ends is fitted or coupled to the other. The word enters Middle English via Old French and the ...

History

East Asia

The earliest archaeological evidence of belt hooks date to the 7th century BCE, in East Asia. Belt hooks were made with bronze, iron, gold, and jade. Texts from

Warring States period The Warring States period in history of China, Chinese history (221 BC) comprises the final two and a half centuries of the Zhou dynasty (256 BC), which were characterized by frequent warfare, bureaucratic and military reforms, and ...

China claim that the belt hook originates from Central Asian nomads, although belt hooks have been found in China predating the Warring States. The equestrian tradition, initially foreign to China, was tightly related to wearing belted pants, thus belt hooks became one of the features of "

barbaric A barbarian is a person or tribe of people that is perceived to be primitive, Savage (pejorative term), savage and warlike. Many cultures have referred to other cultures as barbarians, sometimes out of misunderstanding and sometimes out of prej ...

" exoticism. As such, the hooks became an object of aesthetic contemplation. For example, Qu Yuan () compares beautiful women to the belt hooks ().

Europe

Belt hooks have also been found in

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

archaeological sites.

References

External links

* Belts (clothing) Belt buckles Chinese inventions Textile closures {{Clothing-stub