Renaissance Armor

From May 15 through September 5th of 2022 the Denver Art Museum held an exhibit with one of the largest collections of armor in the world. This exhibit, called "The Age of Armor" was put together by the Worcester Art Museum and featured pieces of armor and art from the John Higgins Armory Collection. It held pieces of weaponry, paintings, sculptures, and of course a multitude of armory from around the world.

Armor is fascinating...and cool to look at, but I really wanted to explore what I could find out about the meaning of armor, besides the instinctual feeling of attraction for wanting to see medieval forged weapons and metal.

As you entered the exhibit it greeted you with a quote from Mark Twain,

"Armor is Heavy, yet it is a proud burden, and a man standeth straight in it." - Mark Twain

I thought nothing of this at first until I began to notice something about the armor; it was very decorative. I had never thought of armor as...glamorous.

This was the first complete set of armor showcased. It immediately drove the question to mind, "why would something used for battle be so beautiful?". The purpose of this story map is to guide you through my process of answering this question by delving into the iconographic style of renaissance armor.

This set of armor is rich in design from helmet to sabaton (feet guard). It can automatically be assumed that this was worn by somebody important, someone with power and poise. The breastplate seems to be covered in shields or doors, each either displaying what can be seen to be two serpents coiling a trident, two pegasuses mirroring each other, or a lion with its mane. First, it is significant to display each figure in a shield like pattern because it creates a feeling of increasing protection; armor covered with shields. They aren't just shields, but instead powerful figures of Greek or Roman mythology. Despite the overwhelming etching, there seems to be a symmetrical pattern that occurs throughout the armor, reinforcing the strength and power of this piece.

The Denver Art Museum lists this piece as "based on ancient Roman designs...[and] evokes our perceptions of knightly heroes of the Middle Ages, such as King Arthur, Tristan, and Lancelot..."(Age of Armor Access Guide 2022). While the closer detail may have been more important to the wearer or armor smith, the golden-silver design would nevertheless have been startlingly visible and bright under the sun on the battlefield or victory parade.

Even the simplest of patterns can take a meaning when it comes to armor. This helmet with floral designs would've been used for tournament combat fought on foot (Age of Armor Access Guide 2022). As seen in the picture above there are golden leaf and floral designs growing upwards across the comb of the helmet as well as a leaf pattern on either side helmet (one side seen above). These patterns can be thought of as a type of flourishing that is wished during a tournament. However, it is more likely that the patterns represented the person who wore this helmet during the foot tournament. Because other tourney helmets didn't have as intricate of designs, especially since the head was targeted for heavy blows or strikes from a sword, it shows that this gold leaved design signifies the nobility or importance of the person who competed in those foot tourneys.

The region seen in the map to the right was most prominent in craftmanship due to its abundance of materials needed to make armor. Such materials included wood, rivers, iron ore and infrastructure to allow for continual mass production of armor (Forgeng 2021, 27). The cities marked on the map held the most important and prominent armorers during the European Renaissance.

Armor is a form of art that creates social meaning by status of wealth or political power. However, armor is popularly known for war or tournaments, yet its use for these reasons steadily declined during the middle of the 16th century, mainly due to the introduction of firearms. Instead, armor gained more usage for the purposes of entertainment or class. In Jeffrey Forgeng's catalogue "The Age of Armor," armor is mentioned to have been "worn by the privileged elites of European society" it was something that "sent messages about the wearer" (Forgeng 2021, 33). Because armor was able to carry important symbolism, it allowed its wearer to physically transform into an embodiment of its meaning.

This French piece is an excellent example of a physical transformation that its wearer is able to embody in order to change their appearance and meaning. This ceremonial half-armor is supposed to symbolize the connection between love and war. There is a usage of bilateral symmetry to separate and mirror the two motifs. On the left side, war is seen with his helmet and spear. On the right, love is seen only with a cloth and child. If you look closely both are reaching out and holding each other by their arms. This links the two motifs while separating the barrier between the two and conjoining two meanings that would normally be seen as opposite.

Creating imprints into armor, as seen in this French ceremonial piece, makes the structure of the metal very weak. This creates a contrast between the idea of armor being worn to symbolize strength versus the actual usage of the armor.

It can be interpreted that this piece would be worn to celebrate the end of a war or battle, or to be worn to a funeral commemorating the loss of soldiers. From both the viewer's and wearer's perspective, the person in this armor is expressing vulnerability from the fragile covering, while also holding strength from wearing such an intricate shiny plate of armor.

The pieces below are separate from "The Age of Armor" exhibit and come from The Metropolitan Museum but are important to consider for decretive and cultural armor during the European Renaissance.

An interesting fact about armor is that it was commonly influenced by regional civilian clothing (Forgeng 2021, 20). Armor was often used for "expressing personal identity [and] cultural affiliation" (Forgeng 2021, 37). The piece above for example can be interpreted to have been worn by someone who deeply followed the Christian religion. The upward beaming lines can be seen as shining golden light leading to heaven or to the important figures found within the Bible. Directly below the neck covering, a figure with lines or light protruding from their body can be seen, possibly representing Jesus Christ.

The breast plate depicted above carries symbolism derived from Christianity and scenes within the Bible (Arts and Armor 2000-2022, 14.25.716b–f). The placing of these three scenes around the chest or heart is significant to display the covering and protection of a vital organ of the human body. The expressions on the plate as The Metropolitan Museum puts it represent the "Virgin and Child in the center, Saint Paul on the right, and Saint George on the left" with "a Latin inscription below read[ing], CRISTVS RES VENIT IN PACE ET DEVS HOMO FACTVS ES (Christ the King came in peace and God was made man)" (Arts and Armor 2000-2022, 14.25.716b–f).

The back and front side of the sallet shown to the right and below is a great depiction of armor with the ability to transform its wearer. The entire sallet is covered in gold depicting the wealth and prestige of its wearer. It could also allude to a transformation of a person into a higher being. This can be supported by the eye like design on both the front and back side of the helmet referencing to an ever present and watching person. It is important to note that The Metropolitan Museum of Art lists this sallet as having been "inspired by Islamic examples" and to have "belonged to Abd 'Abd Allāh Muhammad, known in the West as Boabdil" (Arts and Armor 2000-2022, 1983.413). This is important because it explains the reason as two why it was created with geometric designs unlike most other helmets during the European Renaissance.

Other helmets for non-battle purposes made during the Renaissance, such as the one seen to the left, depicted scenes with people. In this case The Metropolitan Museum Lists this piece as representing "Greek mythology depicting the Battle of Centaurs and Lapiths" (Arts and Armor 2000-2022, 04.3.217; 22.140).

It is important in Islamic religion to not display any figures in religious art because it creates a misguidance of following a person or animal rather than a undepictable God. Because this helmet was possibly made to serve Islamic nobility, the entire sallet, front, back, and sides are covered with geometric design rather than depicting any type of body. The use of calligraphy can also be found on the bottom part of the backside of the sallet. By using a combination of Islamic religious art on this helmet shows that the wearer, presumably Boabdil, was embodying the figure of God as well as acting as a symbol of respecting God.

"Armor is Heavy, yet it is a proud burden, and a man standeth straight in it." - Mark Twain

When I first entered "The Age of Armor" exhibit I didn't expect to see beautifully designed and etched armor. Taking the time to visually examine some of the richest pieces of armor from the John Higgins Armory Collection on display at the Denver Art Museum, as well as a few pieces from The Metropolitan Museum, turned my perspective from battle and blank slates of strong metal to societal and cultural meaning that displays not only strength but also vulnerability. Mark Twain's quote turned from some cliché into a meaning of significance that the wearer holds from transforming their body into a social motif.