Belt slide, Jin–Yuan dynasty, 12th–14th century
China
Jade (Nephrite); H. 2 5/8 in. (6.7 cm)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Purchase, Florence and Herbert Irving Gift, 1991 (1991.483)

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Leading fierce warriors on horseback, Genghis Khan conquered northern China in 1233. Even though the population, sophistication, and wealth of China dwarfed that of the Mongols, his grandson Khubilai Khan succeeded in seizing control of the entire country by 1279. Although other non-Chinese groups had conquered parts of China in the past, this was the first time in history that all of China was ruled by a foreign regime.