Portions of a Field Armor
c. 1588
Medium
Steel, brass, gilding, leather, and silk velvet textile
Dimensions
H. (mounted with arm defenses): 61 cm (30 in.) Wt. 39 lb. 10 oz. (17.7 kg)
Classification
suit
Department
Applied Arts of Europe
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
106377
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
During the late Middle Ages and Renaissance, some of the finest armorers worked exclusively for royal patrons in the workshops set up to meet their needs. In 1511 King Henry VIII of England established such a workshop at Greenwich Palace outside London, which produced outstanding armor for the English court for over a century. It was staffed largely by German craftsmen, among them Jacob Halder, who was master workman at Greenwich when this half-armor was produced around 1588–90. Made for a high-...