id:			95928
accession number:	1916.1647
share license status:	CC0
url:			https://clevelandart.org/art/1916.1647
updated:		2022-01-04 14:38:51.574000

Breastplate, c. 1550. Germany, Nuremberg, 16th century. Steel with etched figure kneeling before Crucifixion; overall: 31.3 x 35 x 20 cm (12 5/16 x 13 3/4 x 7 7/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance 1916.1647

title:				Breastplate
title in original language:	
series:				
series in original language:	
creation date:			c. 1550
creation date earliest:		1545
creation date latest:		1555
current location:		210A Armor Court
creditline:			Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance
copyright:			

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culture:	Germany, Nuremberg, 16th century
technique:	steel with etched figure kneeling before Crucifixion
department:	Medieval Art
collection:	MED - Arms & Armor
type:		Arms and Armor
find spot:	
catalogue raisonne: 

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CREATORS

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measurements: Overall: 31.3 x 35 x 20 cm (12 5/16 x 13 3/4 x 7 7/8 in.)
state of the work:	
edition of the work: 	

support materials:


inscriptions:

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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS

	title:		European Arms and Armor from the Cleveland Museum of Art (Long-term Loan)
	opening date:   1993-07-01T04:00:00
	<i>European Arms and Armor from the Cleveland Museum of Art (Long-term Loan)</i>. Birmingham Museum of Art (organizer) (July 1, 1993-July 1, 1995).

	title:		Armor Court Reinstallation
	opening date:   1998-09-10T00:00:00
	<i>Armor Court Reinstallation</i>. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer).

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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS

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PROVENANCE

	Director of the Porte de Hals of Brussels
	date: 
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


	Frank Gair Macomber; Boston, MA, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art
	date: ?-1916
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


	The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
	date: 1916-
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


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fun fact: 
Engraving is one of the oldest techniques for decorating metal objects; here the artist used a sharp instrument to scratch the design into the surface.

digital description: 


wall description: 
This breastplate, lacking its tassets, is nonetheless a fine example of the superb sculptural forms achieved by Renaissance armorers. Its contours and glancing surface illustrate the extremes sought by both armorers and patrons in order to deflect projectiles such as crossbow bolts and thrusting lances. Embellishment was an important aspect of fine armor. This breastplate bears a fine etched decoration of a kneeling knight, possibly the armor's owner, before the Crucifixion. This may have created a kind of personalized devotional image for use in combat.
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RELATED WORKS

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CITATIONS

	<em>Catalogue of Arms and Armour</em>. Vol. 3, <em>16th century</em>. [Boston, Massachusetts]: [Frank Gair Macomber], [1900-1915].
	page number: 	Mentioned and Reproduced: No. (160) 163
	url:		https://archive.org/details/CatArmsArmour3_201602/page/n312

	Gilchrist, Helen Ives. <em>A Catalogue of the Collection of Arms &amp; Armor Presented to the Cleveland Museum of Art by Mr. and Mrs. John Long Severance; 1916-1923</em>. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1924.
	page number: 	Mentioned: p. 63, C7
	url:		https://archive.org/details/SeveranceCollection1924/page/n88

	Fliegel, Stephen N.<em> Arms and Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art.</em> [Cleveland, Ohio]: The Museum, 1998.
	page number: 	pp. 78, 163; cat. no. 30
	url:		

	Fliegel, Stephen N. <em>Arms &amp; Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art</em>. [Cleveland, Ohio]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2007.
	page number: 	cat. no. 24, p. 183
	url:		

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IMAGES

web:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.1647/1916.1647_web.jpg
print:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.1647/1916.1647_print.jpg
full:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.1647/1916.1647_full.tif