Infantry Garniture of a Target (Shield) and Pointed Morion
1570/80
- Medium
- Steel, brass, gilding, silk velvet, horse hair, silk, and silver-gilt fringe
- Classification
- Armor
- Dimensions
- Rondache: Diam.: 55.9 cm (22 in.); ;
- Culture
- Milan
- Museum
- Art Institute of Chicago, Applied Arts of Europe
- Credit line
- George F. Harding Collection
- Rights
- Public domain (CC0), as the museum states it.
- Who can see it
- Tweens profiles and older: its subjects are known and suit older children. How works are placed
View at the Art Institute of Chicago
About this work
Matched round shields with open-faced helmets formed essential equipment for noble field commanders; in addition to providing protection, these served as a sign of rank. This heavy shield (target) and helmet (morion) were intended to defend against gunfire and blows from swords and pikes. Remarkably, they retain their original silk linings and fringe, decorative features that also muffled clanging blows. Training in the use of the target was fundamental to those learning the art of self-defense in the period.
Description © Art Institute of Chicago, CC BY 4.0
