Info Favorites Register Log in
myArmoury.com Discussion Forums

Forum index Memberlist Usergroups Spotlight Topics Search
Forum Index > Historical Arms Talk > The medial ridge; fashion or function? Reply to topic
This is a standard topic  
Author Message
Pieter B.





Joined: 16 Feb 2014
Reading list: 10 books

Posts: 645

PostPosted: Thu 13 Jul, 2017 11:53 am    Post subject: The medial ridge; fashion or function?         Reply with quote

Pouring over older threads and having a look at some 16th century and later breastplates it struck me that the (vertical) medial ridge appeared in Gothic armor a few decades before it appeared on Milanese armor. After that it becomes nearly ubiquitous in the 16th century

My question is whether the medial ridge on armor was just a fashion thing or an improvement over the earlier more globose designs.
View user's profile Send private message
Mark Moore




Location: East backwoods-assed Texas
Joined: 01 Oct 2003
Likes: 6 pages
Reading list: 1 book

Posts: 2,294

PostPosted: Thu 13 Jul, 2017 12:07 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

To my knowledge, the medial ridge was initially used to strengthen the breastplate. In Gothic-style armor, it was later accompanied by fluting on the sides to even further reinforce the strength. And, it looked good. So....both, I guess. Happy ....McM
''Life is like a box of chocolates...'' --- F. Gump
View user's profile Send private message
James Arlen Gillaspie
Industry Professional



Location: upstate NY
Joined: 10 Nov 2005

Posts: 587

PostPosted: Sat 15 Jul, 2017 8:22 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

The medial line down those late 14th and 15th c. breastplates that have them did not change their globose shape much, as they were more like a huge flute than an angle. Later peascod breastplates, on the other hand, do have a medial line that is an actual angle (NOT a constant one; they start out gentle and sometimes become acute at the 'bag' of the peascod. They both deal with blunt trauma extremely well, but the peascod uses a different shape to accomplish this.
jamesarlen.com
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website


Display posts from previous:   
Forum Index > Historical Arms Talk > The medial ridge; fashion or function?
Page 1 of 1 Reply to topic
All times are GMT - 8 Hours

View previous topic :: View next topic
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
You cannot attach files in this forum
You can download files in this forum






All contents © Copyright 2003-2024 myArmoury.com — All rights reserved
Discussion forums powered by phpBB © The phpBB Group
Switch to the Basic Low-bandwidth Version of the forum