Kolt or kolty was a part of a female headgear, hanging on a ryasna at both temples as a sign of the family's wealth, common in 11th-13th centuries in Old Rus'. It comprised a pair of metal pieces, joined to form a hollow medallion or star that, presumably, contained a piece of cloth, impregnated with fragrances.
Origin The origin of the word “kolt” is obscure. As a term, it was introduced in the late 19th century in the course of ethnographic surveys. According to a version it derived from the , meaning 'earrings',Б. Д. Гринченко. Словарь украинского языка, К., 1908, т. 2, с. 262 (in Russian) also in West-Ukrainian dialects “колток”.А. А. Зализняк. Древненовгородский диалект. М., 2004, с. 268 (in Russian) In a Novgorod dialect the word “колтки” means pendants of earrings, it was also mentioned in birch bark document No. 644, found in Novgorod, dating back to Novgorod Republic.
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a kolt in the collection of Kremlin Armory Chamber, Moscow a star-shaped kolt in the collection of Kremlin Armory Chamber, Moscow a circular kolt in the collection of the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg