Close Helmet

Culture Italian

Dateabout 1570

Mediumetched and blackened steel with traces of gilding, and copper

Dimensions29 × 30 × 17 cm (11 7/16 × 11 13/16 × 6 11/16 in.), 7 lb 2 oz (weight)

ClassificationsArms and Armor

Credit LineThe John Woodman Higgins Armory Collection

Terms

Object number2014.1085

DescriptionOf the type rotating on the gorget. 1-piece skull. Piercings on the brow of the skull suggest that it may once have been mounted with a reinforce, and that the visor, which lacks corresponding holes, is an association. There are various holes in the comb, probably for mounting. Coarseness of execution and cracking of the metal in the area of the rotation groove on the skull suggests that the lower edge has been reworked.
Label TextThe close helmet fits tightly, entirely enclosing the head of the wearer. It was in use by the early 1500s and within a short time it became the most common form of knightly headpiece, still recognizable today.ProvenancePurchased by John W. Higgins in May 1931 from Duque del Infantado (Vinuelas Castle, Madrid, Spain). Given to the Museum on December 15, 1931. Collection transfer from Higgins Armory, January 2014.

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