Breastplate for infantry or light cavalry armor - Lot 69

Lot n° 69
Go to lot
Estimation :
58000 - 78000 EUR
Result with fees
Result : 98 906EUR
Breastplate for infantry or light cavalry armor - Lot 69
Breastplate for infantry or light cavalry armor North Germany (possibly Brunswick), c. 1560-70 H. 46 cm - l. 37 cm Breastplate for an infantry or light cavalry armor Northern Germany (possibly Brunswick), c. 1560-70 H. 18 1/8 in - W. 14 1/2 in 172 CH Plastron from infantry or light cavalry armor, with central ridge and bust, articulated armpit crescents and strong twisted borders on the collar and arms. It is extended by a three-blade poacher joined by leathers on the reverse (while the first blade was permanently attached to the breastplate, the two lower blades made up the top of a long poacher-tassette originally removable, but now held by modern fixed rivets). Shoulder attachment loops. The decoration alternates between blackened acid-etched bands in the hollows, whose motifs stand out against a stippled background, and blackened flat areas. The upper band, bordered at the bottom by an embossed brace, features two imperial eagles nimbed amid foliage, framing a cartouche bearing the inscription GOT ALLEIN DE EHR (God alone in the heavens), a variation and abbreviation of "Allein Gott in der Höh de Ehr" (Glory to God alone in the highest heavens), the beginning of a Lutheran hymn from around 1523 attributed to Nikolaus Decius. The central band of the breastplate features the figure of Samson with his donkey jaw, his name inscribed beneath his feet, and continues to widen at the front of the poacher with foliage scrolls and a winged putto head. At the top sinister, at heart level, on an unblackened section, a bearded man in armor, his helmet placed in front of him, prays on his knees before Christ on the cross. The two side bands, also extending onto the poacher, feature a purely ornamental decoration of foliage, fruit, birds and male and female profiles in laurel wreaths. The very high quality of the engraving, typical of Saxon workshops such as Brunswick, indicates that this piece was made for a high-ranking gentleman, probably a captain of infantry or light cavalry. The hymn excerpt on the collar, and the figure of the praying man in adoration before Christ on the cross, with no intermediary between him and the divinity, reveal the wearer's adherence to the Lutheran reform, of which Saxony was the cradle. As for the figure of Samson, the Israelite hero who killed thousands of Philistines with the jawbone of a donkey, among 16th-century Protestants he was a symbol of strength and resistance against oppression. Thus, for the owner of the armor, the decoration served as much as talismanic protection as religious affirmation. A breastplate with a similar composition can be found, for example, at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (1977-167-138). Good overall condition, a few spots of surface corrosion, a few small lacunae in the black varnish of the solids, black of the engraving background worn in places. Translation at the end of the catalog
My orders
Sale information
Sales conditions
Return to catalogue