id:			96077
accession number:	1916.1816.a
share license status:	CC0
url:			https://clevelandart.org/art/1916.1816.a
updated:		2023-08-23 18:10:13.491000

Close Helmet, c. 1575. North Italy, Brescia (?), 16th century. Steel with etched decorative bands and roundels; overall: 29.5 x 28.5 x 23 cm (11 5/8 x 11 1/4 x 9 1/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance 1916.1816.a

title:				Close Helmet
title in original language:	
series:				
series in original language:	
creation date:			c. 1575
creation date earliest:		1570
creation date latest:		1580
current location:		210A Armor Court
creditline:			Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance
copyright:			

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culture:	North Italy, Brescia (?), 16th century
technique:	steel with etched decorative bands and roundels
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: 29.5 x 28.5 x 23 cm (11 5/8 x 11 1/4 x 9 1/16 in.)
state of the work:	
edition of the work: 	

support materials:

	description:	etched decorative bands and roundels ("Pisan" style)
	watermarks:	

inscriptions:

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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS

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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS

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PROVENANCE

	Duc d'Osuna
	date: 
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


	Frank Gair Macomber (1849-1941), 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:
Etching, by far the most common technique for armor decoration, involved the use of a graving tool assisted by acid to create a design. The etched design could then be blackened to create contrast as shown here.

digital description:


wall description:
Decoration was critical to fine armor, and etching was the most commonly used technique. Here, the bands along the borders are etched. On the breastplate, pauldrons (shoulder guards), and tassets (hip and upper leg guards), etched medallions enclose profile busts reminiscent of ancient Roman portraits. The lance rest on the breastplate indicates that this half-suit was once part of a complete field armor for man and horse. The etching technique used for armor was developed in the late 1400s. The metal surface was first coated with an acid-resistant substance, such as wax or varnish. An etching needle was then used to scratch a design into the surface. The exposed areas were then treated with an acid that would "bite" or etch the lines into the metal. When the coating was removed, the etched design was blackened for contrast.
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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. (155) 158
	url:		https://archive.org/details/CatArmsArmour3_201602/page/n273

	Fliegel, Stephen N. <em>Arms and Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art.</em> [Cleveland, Ohio]: The Museum, 1998.
	page number: 	pp. 76-7, 81, 162, Cat. no. 3
	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. 5, p. 182
	url:		

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IMAGES

web:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.1816.a/1916.1816.a_web.jpg
print:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.1816.a/1916.1816.a_print.jpg
full:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.1816.a/1916.1816.a_full.tif