Armor for the Plankengestech ("joust over the tilt")

Culture Northern German

Date1550–1575

MediumSteel, iron, brass and modern leather with modern restorations

Dimensions64 lb, 6 oz (weight)

ClassificationsArms and Armor

Credit LineThe John Woodman Higgins Armory Collection

Terms

Object number2014.79.1

DescriptionBelongs with HAM#s 2610.2,4. (Now 2014.79.2 and .3)

Consists of Helmet, Collar (modern), Breastplate with lance-rest and tilting-target, Backplate (19c, decorated to match), Tassets, Pauldrons, Vambraces, Manifer, "Right" gauntlet (altered from a L gauntlet), Cuisses, Greaves.

Toe-caps are unrelated (South German, ca. 1530-40)

Decorative motifs:

A) Engrailed edging, with incised double-lines in the valleys of the engrailing.
B) Elaborate mannerist etched bands and cartouches.
C) Leafy scrolling motif etched around perimeters.

19D x 29W as mounted
Label TextThis armor is a German take on an Italian style of jousting equipment. The “tilt” was a wooden barrier between the jousters—it actually made the joust more intense by allowing the jousters to run along it at “full-tilt,” without worrying about a collision. The trelliswork on the shield helped catch the tip of the opponent’s lance, increasing the chances of a dramatic shatter to please the fans. The right hand was protected by a vamplate, a hand-guard attached to the lance. ProvenanceHollingworth Magniac collection (England; to 1892) Joseph Duveen (NYC and London) Oliver H.P. Belmont (NYC and Newport, RI) Clarence H. Mackay (Roslyn, LI). Purchased by Museum on November 9, 1940 from Jacques Seligmann & Co. Inc. (NYC), agents for estate of Clarence H. Mackay. Armor was numbered #A-52/302 in the Mackay collection. Collection transfer from Higgins Armory, January 2014.

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