Yuzyum yaprak is a buckle for the traditional women's belt of the Crimean Tatars. It`s made of gilded silver, with filigree in the form of grape leaves and multi-tiered plant decoration and pendants.
Jewelry, like clothes, determined the social status of a Tatar girl and her family. Girls wore belts from childhood. Belts with a buckle in the form of a grape leaf (yuzyum yaprak) were bridal. They were prepared as a dowry, an important element of a wedding outfit and were worn even after marriage. The weight of such belts was 300-500 grams of silver or gold. Ornament, complexity of its execution, and number of details could be different, depending on financial situation of the family. It is known that some sets of wedding belt jewelry were collected for years by gradually ordering individual elements from a jeweler.
A belt with a yuzyum yaprak buckle is an important part of the cultural heritage of the Crimean Tatars and has no analogues in the cultures of other nations.
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