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Close Helmet for the Tourney

A work made of steel, brass, and leather.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of steel, brass, and leather.

Date:

c. 1580

Artist:

South German; Augsburg

About this artwork

This helmet was used in the sport of the tourney, a mock battle on horseback or on foot. To protect against dangerous trusts entering under the helmet’s neck plates, the helmet’s collar is designed to rotate on a rim that closes over the separate gorget or neck defense. Though this allowed for some lateral head movement, it was a more restrictive alternative to the overlapping plates on close helmets for the field of battle.

The upper visor is reinforced with an additional plate to deflect strikes from a lance or sword. This reinforce was repaired with a riveted and braised patch covering the left visor pivot; together, with sword cuts over the comb or center ridge of the helmet, this repair suggests this piece received some heavy use.

Status

On View, Gallery 239

Department

Applied Arts of Europe

Title

Close Helmet for the Tourney

Place

Augsburg (Object made in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

Made 1570–1590

Medium

Steel, brass, and leather

Dimensions

H.: 30.5 cm (12 in.)

Credit Line

George F. Harding Collection

Reference Number

1982.2170

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/112089/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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