Savoyard Helmet (Todenkopf)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Savoyard Helmet (Todenkopf)

Date
c. 1600–20
Medium
steel, blackened
Culture
Italy or Germany, early 17th century
Department
Medieval Art
Institution
Cleveland Museum of Art
Object ID
171077

From the Cleveland Museum of Art record

The term “Savoyard helmet” is used today to evoke the elite cavalry units formed by Charles Emanuel I, Duke of Savoy (1580-1630). Such helmets were designed principally to withstand and protect the wearer from shot from the powerful wheel-lock guns of the day, though their secondary function was to intimidate and terrify. The design of the helmet suggests a human face or skull. They were known as todenkopf or “death’s head” helmets in Germany. The helmet would have originally been associated with a three-quarter cuirassier armor. Similar armors are displayed nearby. This type of helmet is also called a "todenkopf," translating to "death's head."

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Provenance & credit

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Credit line
Severance and Greta Millikin Trust
Provenance
Probably collection Baron Peuker, Berlin, sold at auction in Bruxelles: Le Roy, M. Henri (1854): Catalogue Illustre D'Armes Anciennes Européennes et Orientales... plate II, fig. 21 | Collection Bach, Paris | Collection Rutherfurd Stuyvesant at Rutherford Hall, New York; published in The Collection of Arms and Armor of Rutherfurd Stuyesant, p. 26, plate XIII | Collection Frank Andriana, Los Angeles; published in: Curtis, Howard M. (1977): 2,500 Years of European Helmets, p. 304.

Part of a LinkedCulture topic

  • Representative object from the topic European Renaissance Armor Components
    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

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