Cleveland Museum of Art

Gothic Breastplate

Date: c. 1540
Medium: steel
Culture: Germany
Department: Medieval Art
Institution: Cleveland Museum of Art
Object ID: 97032

From the Cleveland Museum of Art record

A breastplate is an element of armor that protects the chest and abdomen; it would have been worn with a now missing backplate. Nuremburg was one of the chief armor production centers and gained international renown; armor produced there was exported throughout Europe. It was not a coincidence that Nuremburg was known for its armor. The ore available in the region made Nuremburg an iron producing center close to the raw material needed to make a better quality and reliable product. If you are looking for this in the armor court make sure to look up; it is displayed as part of a panoply, or display with other arms.

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Provenance & credit

As published by the source institution. Coverage varies — not every institution's open-data feed includes ownership history.

Credit line: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance
Provenance: Marquis de Belleval et de Licques | -1916: Frank Gair Macomber (1849-1941), Boston, MA, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art | 1916-: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Part of a LinkedCulture topic

European Renaissance Armor Components
These objects are all pieces of defensive armor and military equipment from 15th-17th century Europe, primarily from major armoring centers like Italy, Germany, and France.
500 objects from 4 institutions