Elements of an Armor Garniture for the Field, Joust, and Tourney of a Radziwill Prince of Poland and Lithuania
1573
Medium
Steel, gilding, and leather
Classification
suit
Department
Applied Arts of Europe
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
116166
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
By the early sixteenth century armorers had devised a system of interchangeable pieces, called a garniture, that could be converted between use for battle and tournaments. These four reinforcing pieces belonged to an elaborate garniture produced for a member of the Radziwill family, princes of Poland and Lithuania. Pieces of this garniture were dispersed from the Radziwill family armory at Nesvizh Castle around the turn of the twentieth century. Portions of this armor in the Art Institute inclu...
About the Artist
Unknown
The artist designated as "Unknown" in our virtual museum's collection exemplifies a poignant chapter in art history: creators whose identities have faded into obscurity despite the enduring power of their work. With only one known artwork attributed to them in our holdings, this figure represents countless anonymous hands that shaped visual culture across centuries. Museums worldwide, including th...