Posts: 782 Location: Upstate New York
Sat 20 Jan, 2007 4:43 pm
Hello again!
I found illustrations of two of these Almain collars in the appendix of Claude Blair's
European Armour Circa 1066 to Circa 1700. This tends to support a possible Central European origin for at least some of these, as is suggested by what Alan said about such collars being found in Graz.
Blair shows a South-German Almain collar of circa 1550. It was from the Tower of London Armouries (II. 1 is the possible catalogue number according to Blair's caption). This one has fairly short spaulders.
The Almain collar of circa 1560 that Blair shows is possibly Saxon. It was from the Tower of London Armouries (II. 29 is the possible catalogue number according to Blair's short caption). As shown in Blair's drawing, this particular piece has bands of engraved decoration, suggesting it was a finer piece than the "Almain rivets".
I also found mention of these things in
The Complete Encyclopdedia of Arms & Weapons edited by Leonid Tarrasuk and Claude Blair, under the entry for "gorget":
Tarassuk and Blair wrote: |
A fairly common type of gorget was the Almain collar, which covered the top of the shoulders and, designed to be worn with mail sleeves, was usually provided with SPAULDERS or very small PAULDRONS. This style originated in Germany in the 1530s (hence the term, a debased form of Allemagne, French for "Germany") for light-cavalry and infantry officers officers and was worn with a straight breasted cuirass (with lowered upper edge). |
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