Misyurka (skull cap)
Culture
Ottoman
, or
Date1500s–1600s
Mediumiron
Dimensions13.5 × 16 cm (5 5/16 × 6 5/16 in.), 2 lb, 2 oz (weight)
ClassificationsArms and Armor
Credit LineThe John Woodman Higgins Armory Collection
Object number2014.102
DescriptionIron, shallow hemispherical bowl with roughly circular section spike riveted to center. two-stage spike, lower balustered, accepting smaller top which tapers to flattened point, now bent. two major repairs visible at edge of bowl. This description assumes that the broader opening between the cheekflaps goes forward.
Aventail with straight edge, of robust iron rings, alternating riveted and solid, 15 cm long. Mail attached to cap by row of rings.
On each side is an iron cheekpiece, each with numerous holes and breaks. The left one is made of 2 pieces riveted together. The cheekpieces sit low and fit oddly, suggesting that they have been recycled from their original use.
There is severe rust damage over the bowl and cheeks, and the right cheek is broken.
Label TextThis misyurka, with its round dome, attached neck-guard of mail, and top spike, is one variant of a typically Islamic style of helmet. The ear-flaps are unusual, and their fit into the mail is slightly awkward, suggesting that they may be a working-life modification—possibly cannibalized from another helmet to be added to this one. Versions of the missyurka, usually without ear-flaps and with a longer neck-guard, were used by horsemen throughout the Ottoman Empire as well as areas influenced by Ottoman culture, including eastern Europe, Russia, and the Caucasus. The defense was worn high on the head, over a cap or fez, and might be wrapped with a turban around its base. In remote areas of the Caucasus the missyurka continued in use into the late 1800s.ProvenanceCollection transfer from Higgins Armory, January 2014.
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