Cleveland Museum of Art

Seven-Flanged Mace

Date

c. 1540–50

Medium

gilded russet steel; with chiseled foliate decoration

Culture

Italy (?), 16th century

Department

Medieval Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

The mace was primarily a weapon for mounted warriors in both actual combat and courtly contests. For this reason it was regarded as a knightly weapon. Arming oneself with a mace had gradually taken on significance among the nobility and commanding officers. It eventually came to be considered a badge of rank, to be carried by its owner in parades and other ceremonial occasions, as this decorated example certainly was. In use throughout the middle ages, the mace became increasingly popular in the 1400s and 1500s because edged weapons (such as swords) were ineffective against fully developed plate armor.

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