Belt buckle Made From 18-Carat White Gold Costs £350,000

The belt buckle that costs as much as a house - and it doesn't even come with a leather strap! £350,000 accessory made from 18-carat white gold unveiled. It's been dubbed the Swiss watch of the belt buckle world but if you want to give the man in your life this accessory for Christmas, you'll need to take out a second mortgage.

The Roland Iten Calibre R822 Predator will set buyers back a staggering £350,000 - more than the average price of a house in Britain.

It is made from 18-carat white gold and titanium and is adorned with 387 baguette-cut and round-cut diamonds, which total 14.15 carats.

The high tech accessory features 167 components, with all of the mechanisms self-cleaning. It has four complications including safety catches to minimise accidental release of the buckle. 

But despite the high price tag, anyone who can afford it will also have to spend extra money on a belt - as it is sold without the all-important leather strap.

The accessory is designed by mechanical luxury brand 'for gentlemen', Roland Iten. It weighs 145g, with the gold making up 90g of this.

On their website, the company states: 'Operating the Calibre R822 buckle is a veritable tactile pleasure, and it offers a simple, one-handed adjustment for two positions – looser, for driving or sitting, and tighter, for walking or playing sport.

'It is equipped with 16 (two rows of eight) self-cleaning track wheels that guide the ardillion slide precisely and securely, while a sprung ball bearing tensioner and dampener ensure smooth operation.'

Just three of the belt buckles will be manufactured at the Geneva-based company, founded by Swiss designer Roland Iten.

He designed the world's first complicated mechanical belt buckle in 2003, inspired in his work by the mechanical age of the aeroplane and the steam engine. 

He explains on his brand's website how he wants all his products to be functional as well as beautiful.

He said: 'When you know too much, you don't ask the questions which can ultimately breakthrough the obstacles of the product engineering process. I'm the guy next to the engineer telling him "it will work", all the time he's telling me "it's impossible". 

'It's really a very intimate way to make a product. Then comes the considerable refinement phase- sometimes it takes six months to put back the elegance which was in the original design.'

If the Predator buckle is too expensive, Roland Iten also makes the entry-level Raptor - which costs £37,000. 

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