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Backplate
Backplate
Image © Worcester Art Museum, all rights reserved.

Backplate

Culture
Date1560–1600
Mediumiron and black paint with leather
Dimensions38.7 × 39.4 × 21 cm (15 1/4 × 15 1/2 × 8 1/4 in.), 11 lb 7 oz (weight)
ClassificationsArms and Armor
MarkingsRed-painted "113." inside (style typical of Hohenwerfen). 6 hash-marks inside angle of waist-flange, possibly a "VII next to them.
Credit LineThe John Woodman Higgins Armory Collection
Object number2014.1150.4
DescriptionDeeply dished at shoulderblades, rather well made, of heavy iron, as heavy as the matching breastplate. 1-lame culet probably associated. May once have had a lining--there are rivets around the perimeter, but they are not currently configured to accommodate a lining. Roped neckline with cusped center; roping also at armholes. Triple-incised lines down center of back, along armholes, and in ogive across the top of the back.
ProvenanceArchduke Eugen's Armory, Fortress Hohenwerfen, Salzburg, Austria purchased by John W. Higgins on March 2, 1927 from Anderson Galleries (NY), their no, 420. Given to the Museum on December 15, 1931. Collection transfer from Higgins Armory, Janaury 2014.
On View
Not on view
Breastplate
German
late 1500s
Reference Image - Not for Reproduction
Italian
late 16th–early 17th century, with decoration from 19th century
Reference Image - Not for Reproduction
English
1600–1625
Reference Image - Not for Reproduction
Netherlandish
about 1625–1650, decorated in 1700s
Reference Image - Not for Reproduction
Northern Italian
1560–1570
Reference Image - Not for Reproduction
French
early 1800s, later modified to match 16th-century armor
Reference Image - Not for Reproduction
workshops of Wolf and Peter von Speyer
about 1590–1600
Ceremonial Breastplate
Étienne Delaune
1580s, modified early 1600s
Reference Image - Not for Reproduction
Hallstatt
1200–800 BCE
Reference Image - Not for Reproduction
Netherlandish
about 1625–1650, decorated in 1700s