What's this supposed to represent? -- myArmoury.com

M. Eversberg II

Was going through a website just poking around and wondered what type, if any, of brestplate this was supposed to represent?

M.

Max von Bargen · Posted: Sun 10 Dec, 2006 10:00 pm Post subject:

Interesting. It says "Medieval," but it looks very similar to some Napoleonic heavy cavalry breastplates I've seen. Of course, it's just as likely that I'm wrong, but that looks post-Medieval or very late Medieval at the earliest.

Max

Nathan Robinson · myArmoury Admin

M. Eversberg II-

I've edited your post to include the image in the post itself. I've also moved the topic to the historical arms talk forum. Please take note to what that forum is: "Discussions of reproduction and authentic historical arms and armour from various cultures and time periods".

The breastplate is likely modeled after a something from the Renaissance, but honestly, it looks like a combination Renaissance-Napoleonic piece.

Lafayette C Curtis · Posted: Mon 11 Dec, 2006 6:34 am Post subject:

With a belt, it would have looked perfectly Napoleonic. An 18th- century provenance is also likely, though, and the style looks a bit Spanish to me. Can you provide a link to the company/site that originally sells this?

Allan Senefelder · Industry Professional

This looks very similar to ( if it isn't the same one) the "Renaissance Breast Plate" that MRL sold a few years back. I think they had some kind of package deal if you got it and the burgeonette with falling buffe together.

M. Eversberg II · Posted: Mon 11 Dec, 2006 4:22 pm Post subject:

I seem to have a thing for finding Nepolianic stuff! I would have thought brestplates would have been obsolete by then?

Well, the original site was www.wholesalearmor.com, not exactly a promising source but I was taking a quick look though.

As a side note, what website/book do you reccomend for the history of brestplates? I'm particularly interested in the "rebirth" of them that occured in the latter part of the early middle ages, around 1200 IIRC. I'm for thinking I'd like to collect a period set around that timeframe.

M.

Max von Bargen · Posted: Mon 11 Dec, 2006 7:29 pm Post subject:

Lafayette C Curtis · Posted: Mon 11 Dec, 2006 8:28 pm Post subject:

The French used breatsplates in greater number than other nations, and later on their foes adopted (or rather re-adopted) it because they found out its effectiveness in increasing the cuirassiers' effectiveness. The material benefits (that is, limited protection vs. considerable increase in weight and discomfort) are questionable, but the experts at the time seemed to agree that the morale benefits were quite real in that the cuirassiers (and carabiniers in the French case) came to think of themselves as indestructible.

BTW, I've checked out the site, and I can say that the shape of the backplate makes it look to Neoclassical to be medieval. It strengthens the conclusion that the cuirass is either a Napoleonic model or an Italian/Spanish Renaissance model.