Poleyn of Experimental Left Leg Defense
Culture
American
Date1918
Mediumsteel and leather
Dimensions16.5 × 15.5 × 11 cm (6 1/2 × 6 1/8 × 4 5/16 in.), 3 lb 9.5 oz (weight total)
ClassificationsArms and Armor
Credit LineThe John Woodman Higgins Armory Collection
Object number2014.1176.10.2
Description(Leg Defenses): American experimental model, 1917. See Dean, pp. 263-4, fig. 210. These consist of a one-piece cuisse plate shaped to the thigh, with a outwardly and upwardly curved upper edge that is formed with an inward turn. The side edges are straight, that of the outer side extending well over the outer face of the leg. The cuisse plate is connected to a deep poleyn of one piece, rounded over the knee, via a pair of leather straps. These are twice slotted to fit over studs in the poleyn and the cuisse plate. The basal ends of the straps are riveted to the greaves. These are shaped to the lower leg, and cover the front half only. They reach to the ankle, where they flare slightly and are finished with an outwardly flanged turn. The greave is held to the leg with a pair of buckled straps, one passing around the leg above the calf, the other above the ankle opening. The cuisse is held to the thigh by a buckle and bifurcated strap around the upper part of the leg, and the front face of the plate has a copper grommet-lined hole at the medial top, the function of which is not known for certain (it could be for suspension storage). These defenses, which are of rather thin steel, also proved unfavorable in A.E.F. tests. The fifty pairs made were produced by Mullins and Company (see above); they do not seem to have been intended for use with the defenses described above.
ProvenancePurchased by the museum on 10 June 1940 from Russell Uniform Company (1600 Broadway, NYC). Previously lot #107, U.S. Army Ordnance sale, Middletown Ordnance Reserve Department (Middletown, PA), 19 December 1922. Collection transfer from Higgins Armory, January 2014.
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